Graphical user interface system

ABSTRACT

Provided are systems, methods, and apparatuses for aggregating information adapted for output to a graphical user interface. The methods can include providing a first menu command for a first menu of one or more user-selectable menu items to be displayed on a menu portion of an Aggregated User Interface (AUI) display and providing a content command for content to be displayed on the menu portion of the AUI display in response to the user&#39;s selection. The methods can further aggregate information relating to the one or more user-selectable menu items from the first menu and adapt them to be displayed on a content portion of the AUI display. By aggregating new information and displaying it on a graphical user interface, users can quickly and efficiently view and manipulate content in a more organized fashion.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of prior U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 62/954,052, filed Dec. 27, 2019 which is herebyincorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes

This application refers to and incorporates by reference in theirentirety, the following patent document: U.S. patent application Ser.No. 16/513,526, filed on Jul. 16, 2019, titled “Graphical User InterfaceSystem,” PCT Application PCT/US2019/042079, filed on Jul. 17, 2019,titled “Graphical User Interface System,” and U.S. Design patentapplication No. 29/675,777, Titled “Display Screen with Graphical UserInterface,” filed on Jan. 4, 2019.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present application relates generally to computers and computerapplications, and more particularly to a graphical user interface and adisplay method for displaying user interactive items on the graphicaluser interface.

BACKGROUND

In various applications including without limitation bioanalytical,chemical analytical, radiological analytical, other sciences (e.g., thebiosciences and bioanalytical work), and industrial processes, leadinginto the use of instrumentation for scientific testing (e.g. biologicaltesting, bioinstrumentation) and equipment for industrial processing,the present disclosure improves testing, analysis, and processing withthe aid of integration between consistent software interfaces at variousprocess locations and instrumentation and equipment associated with theprocesses.

Often, computer systems and/or applications utilize a series of menus orthe like that are presented to a user for receiving input in order toperform their functions. Upon a user selecting an option or making achoice from a list of menu items, a computer system and/or applicationmay perform its function based on the selected option, and/or presentanother list of menu items (for example, a list of sub menu items thatdepend on the selected option). The computer system and/or applicationcontinues with this process of performing its menu-driven functions, forinstance, until the function is completed. In such a menu-driven system,it is often the case that an option that is previously selected, onwhich the current functioning of the computer system and/or applicationdepends is not visible on the user interface. Thus, for example, thepath of menu items taken is not visible at a current point in thecomputer system and/or application process. Moreover, not only the takenpath, but also the options in the path that were not selected also maynot be visible on the user interface. Thus, an improved user interfacemay be desirable.

Often instrumentation, for example and without limitation,bioinstrumentation, used with analytical applications is used inlaboratories whereby the data generated by the instrumentation is storedas data files on a shared network drive for post-processing and importinto other electronic systems—namely, a Laboratory InformationManagement System (LIMS). Typically, these integrations requireextensive and time-consuming software development and integration toprovide the generated data to end users. Typically, these dataintegrations are in regulated environments (e.g., 21 CFR Part 11)requiring the generated data to be stored in such a way as to ensure thegenerated data may not be altered by end users. Also, these integrationsare provided to end-users to support post-processing of the generateddata for supplemental analysis, reporting, and sharing with otherend-users, often referred to as collaborators. Additionally, the use ofinstrumentation and the post-processing of generated data is desired tobe performed under a controlled, uniform, unified, and traceable processwithin a collection of end-users working closely together, aiding themin creating consistent and correct supplemental analysis and reports.The use of instrumentation to generate data for supplemental analysisand reports typically requires end users to use consumables (e.g.,bioconsumables, including without limitation reagents and analytes) withlot-specific information in conjunction with their sample(s) under testto create reactions to be measured to produce the generated data withthe lot-specific information used in the generation of supplementalanalysis and reports. To obtain these consumables requires purchase ofthe consumables from provider(s) who must not only ship the physicalconsumables to the end user, but also provide lot-specific informationfor those shipped consumables so that the end user may use theconsumables on the instrumentation and perform the desiredpost-processing. Beyond normal use of instrumentation and associatedconsumables, there is usually a significant support function to ensurethe instrumentation and/or associated consumables are performingoptimally for a customer at all times. The level of workflow integrationrequired to optimally perform the collective and collaborative workassociated with using instrumentation by end users is extremely high, aswell as complicated, requiring a user interface that is simple and easyto use, guiding a user through all of the complexities of theiranalytical workflow. Thus, an improved analytical computing system anduser interface associated with and including instrumentation andassociated consumables may be desired.

Additional fields beyond that of instrumentation face difficultiessimilar to those described above. For example, in various manufacturingsettings, the integration of workflows, tracking of parts, tracking ofconsumables, tracking of work-in-process, documentation of processes andpart production, and all of the issues described above with respect toinstrumentation are difficulties. In addition, the present applicationprovides solutions to areas of consumer needs for organization,prioritization, and improvement in workflow in, e.g., business, office,home, travel, and leisure situations. Other examples exist and thesolutions disclosed herein are not limited to the problems discussedabove.

BRIEF SUMMARY

A method and system of interactively navigating a user through a path ofmenu choices on a user interface to lead the user through a computerapplication may be provided. Such method being performed automaticallyby at least one hardware processor. The method, in an embodiment, mayinclude displaying a current menu of choices on a first portion of auser interface display.

The method may also include allowing a user to select a menu item fromthe current menu of choices displayed on the first portion of the userinterface display and to drill down through levels of menu choices basedon selecting a menu item from a prior level of menu choices. The methodmay further include displaying on a second portion of the user interfacedisplay, past selected and past unselected menu items of thedrilled-down levels, wherein the past unselected menu items aredisplayed as selectable options. The method may also include allowingthe user to jump to a different path of menu choices by allowing theuser to select a past unselected menu item from a previously navigatedmenu level displayed on the second portion of the user interfacedisplay. In an embodiment, the first portion and the second portion areviewable concurrently on the user interface display.

In another embodiment, a method of interactively navigating a userthrough a path of menu choices on a user interface in leading the userthrough a computer application may include displaying a current menu ofchoices on a first portion of a user interface display. The method mayalso include allowing a user to select a menu item from the current menuof choices displayed on the first portion of the user interface displayand to drill down through levels of menu choices based on selecting amenu item from a prior level of menu choices. The method may furtherinclude displaying on a second portion of the user interface display,past selected and past unselected menu items of the drilled-down levels,wherein the past unselected menu items are displayed as selectableoptions. In an embodiment, the first portion and the second portion areviewable concurrently on the user interface display. In an embodiment,the graphical user interface maximizes black space by making abackground of the user interface display black to thereby save storageand improve speed of presentation.

Yet in another embodiment, a method of interactively navigating a userthrough a path of menu choices on a user interface in leading the userthrough a computer application may include displaying a current menu ofchoices on a first portion of a user interface display. The method mayalso include allowing a user to select a menu item from the current menuof choices displayed on the first portion of the user interface displayand to drill down through levels of menu choices based on selecting amenu item from a prior level of menu choices.

The method may further include displaying on a second portion of theuser interface display, past selected and past unselected menu items ofthe drilled-down levels, wherein the past unselected menu items aredisplayed as selectable options. In an embodiment, the first portion andthe second portion are viewable concurrently on the user interfacedisplay. In an embodiment, at least the first portion includes a searchfunction box, a sub-first area and a sub-second area, wherein the firstportion is scrollable as a whole and shows the current menu of choices.In an embodiment, responsive to the detecting of an entry of a searchterm in the search function box, the first portion is bifurcated intothe sub-first area and sub-second area that are scrollable individually.

In yet another embodiment, a method of interactively navigating a userthrough a path of menu choices on a user interface in leading the userthrough a computer application may include displaying a current menu ofchoices on a first portion of a user interface display. The method mayalso include allowing a user to select a menu item from the current menuof choices displayed on the first portion of the user interface displayand to drill down through levels of menu choices based on selecting amenu item from a prior level of menu choices. The method may alsoinclude displaying on a second portion of the user interface display,past selected and past unselected menu items of the drilled-down levels,wherein the past unselected menu items are displayed as selectableoptions.

In an embodiment, the first portion and the second portion are viewableconcurrently on the user interface display. In an embodiment, thecurrent menu of choices is displayed as a graphical rotating wheel thatrotates the choices. In an embodiment, the graphical rotating wheel isrotatable from a first menu item in the current menu of choices to alast menu item in the current menu of choices, and the graphicalrotating wheel is further rotatable from the last menu item to the firstmenu item, and the first menu item and the last menu item do not connectin the graphical rotating wheel's rotation.

Still in another embodiment, a user interface system may be provided,which may include at least one hardware processor and a memory deviceoperatively coupled to the hardware processor. The hardware processormay be operable to retrieve from the memory device a current menu ofchoices and to display the current menu of choices on a first portion ofa user interface display. The hardware processor may be further operableto allow a user to select a menu item from the current menu of choicesdisplayed on the first portion of the user interface display and todrill down through levels of menu choices based on selecting a menu itemfrom a prior level of menu choices. The hardware processor may befurther operable to display on a second portion of the user interfacedisplay, past selected and past unselected menu items of thedrilled-down levels, wherein the past unselected menu items aredisplayed as selectable options. The hardware processor may be furtheroperable to allow the user to jump to a different path of menu choicesby allowing the user to select a past unselected menu item from apreviously navigated menu level displayed on the second portion of theuser interface display. In an embodiment, the first portion and thesecond portion are viewable concurrently on the user interface display.

In another embodiment, a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI) is provided. The method includesproviding, by at least one processor, a first command for a first menuof user-selectable choices to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; and providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of user-selectable choices to bedisplayed on the first portion of the UI display in response to a user'sselection. The second menu is adapted to be displayed on a secondportion of the UI display and includes one or more of a past-selectedmenu item and a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menulevels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed with the first portion.

In another embodiment, a non-transitory computer readable medium havingcomputer instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor,cause the processor to carry out a method for navigating a path ofhierarchical menu levels adapted for output to a graphical userinterface (GUI) is provided. The method includes providing a firstcommand for a first menu of user-selectable choices to be displayed on afirst portion of a user interface (UI) display; and providing a secondcommand for a second menu of user-selectable choices to be displayed onthe first portion of the UI display in response to a user's selection.The second menu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion of the UIdisplay and includes one or more of a past-selected menu item and apast-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and is adaptedto be concurrently viewed with the first portion.

In another embodiment, a system for navigating a path of hierarchicalmenu levels adapted for output to a graphical user interface (GUI) isprovided. The system includes at least one processor; a user inputdevice; and a computer readable storage medium configured to store acomputer application, wherein the at least one processor is configuredto execute instructions of the computer application. The at least oneprocessor may execute the instructions for: providing a first commandfor a first menu of user-selectable choices to be displayed on a firstportion of a user interface (UI) display; and providing a second commandfor a second menu of user-selectable choices to be displayed on thefirst portion of the UI display in response to a user's selection. Thesecond menu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion of the UIdisplay and includes one or more of a past-selected menu item and apast-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and is adaptedto be concurrently viewed with the first portion.

A computer readable storage medium storing a program of instructionsexecutable by a machine to perform one or more methods described hereinalso may be provided.

Further features as well as the structure and operation of variousembodiments are described in detail below with reference to theaccompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a method of displaying interactive items on a user interfacedisplay for computer-user interaction in one embodiment.

FIGS. 2A-2O illustrate sample graphical user interface displays in oneembodiment.

FIG. 2P illustrates an example of a methodical user interface includingan advanced context menu in accordance with an embodiment hereof.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of interactivelydisplaying interactive items on a user interface display forcomputer-user interaction in another aspect.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a user login interface for anassay system in one embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of displaying a startuser interface screen display in one embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a workflow of a define assay methodscreen in one embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a user interface workflow for selectingan assay method in one embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for defining samples in one embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for confirming a run definition in one embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for notifying the user of the accomplished tasks in oneembodiment.

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for an execute/collect option in one embodiment.

FIG. 12 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for an execute/prepare option in one embodiment.

FIG. 13 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for an execute/load option in one embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for an execute/run option in one embodiment.

FIG. 15 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for an execute/unload option in one embodiment.

FIG. 16 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for an execute/review option in one embodiment.

FIG. 17 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for an execute/review option in one embodiment.

FIG. 18 illustrates components of a graphical user interface (GUI)system in one embodiment.

FIG. 19 illustrates a schematic of an example computer or processingsystem that may implement the graphical user interface system in oneembodiment.

FIG. 20 is an example screen shot of a screen displaying a graphicalwheel/slider, which maximizes screen black space, in one embodiment.

FIG. 21 illustrates a cloud-based analytical computing system in anembodiment.

FIG. 22 illustrates a system architecture for a cloud-based analyticalcomputing system in an embodiment.

FIG. 23 illustrates a system architecture for a cloud platform in acloud-based analytical computing system in an embodiment.

FIG. 24 illustrates interactions between administrator computers and acloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 25 illustrates interactions between analytical user computers and acloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 26 illustrates interactions between data integration computers anda cloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 27 illustrates interactions between support user computers and acloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 28 illustrates interactions between support data integrationcomputer and a cloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 29 illustrates interactions between a consumable information uploadcomputer and a cloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 30 illustrates interactions between an account information uploadcomputer and a cloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 31 illustrates interactions between an instrument informationupload computer and a cloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 32 illustrates interactions between a coordinated-operationinstrument computer and a cloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 33A illustrates interactions between an individual-operationinstrument computer and a cloud platform in an embodiment.

FIG. 33B illustrates interactions between a workflow-aid instrumentcomputer and a cloud platform for the embodiment shown in FIG. 33A.

FIG. 34A illustrates a first part of a software architecture for cloudplatform services in an embodiment.

FIG. 34B illustrates a second part of the software architecture for thecloud platform services for the embodiment shown in FIG. 34A.

FIG. 35A illustrates a logical design for system data in an embodiment.

FIG. 35B illustrates a mapping of business entities to an account usingan analytical computing system in an embodiment.

FIG. 35C illustrates a logical design of team data relating to platedata in an embodiment.

FIG. 35D illustrates a logical design of team data relating to assaymethod data in an embodiment.

FIG. 35E illustrates a logical design of team data relating to run datain an embodiment.

FIG. 35F illustrates a logical design of team data relating toexperiment data in an embodiment.

FIG. 36A illustrates an exemplary structure of accounts for users of ananalytical computing system in an embodiment.

FIG. 36B illustrates the flow of the creation of an account for a userof an analytical computing system in an embodiment.

FIG. 36C illustrates the flow of an association of instruments with anaccount for a user of an analytical computing system in an embodiment.

FIG. 36D illustrates the flow of associating consumables with an accountfor a user of an analytical computing system in an embodiment.

FIG. 37 illustrates the modules in an administrator software applicationin an embodiment.

FIG. 38A illustrates the flow for an admin console module in anadministrator app for an account administrator in an embodiment.

FIG. 38B illustrates the flow for an admin console module in anadministrator app for a team administrator in an embodiment.

FIG. 38C illustrates the flow for a user's login process in anembodiment.

FIGS. 38D-38H provide screenshots illustrating aspects of thework-experience flow illustrated in FIG. 38A.

FIG. 38I presents an illustration of an advanced context menu associatedwith an admin console module.

FIG. 39A illustrates the flow for an admin audit trail module in anadministrator app in an embodiment.

FIGS. 39B-39E illustrate aspects of an admin audit trail module userinterface consistent with embodiments hereof.

FIG. 40 illustrates the modules in an analytical user softwareapplication in an embodiment.

FIG. 41 illustrates the flow for an analysis method module in ananalytical user app in an embodiment.

FIG. 42A illustrates the design flow for an assay method module in ananalytical user app in an embodiment.

FIG. 42B illustrates the review flow for an assay method module in ananalytical user app in an embodiment.

FIG. 43A illustrates the design flow for an experiment module in ananalytical user app in an embodiment.

FIG. 43B illustrates the review flow for an experiment module in ananalytical user app in an embodiment.

FIGS. 43C-43H illustrate aspects of a reader module user interfaceconsistent with embodiments hereof.

FIG. 44 illustrates the flow for an audit trail module in an analyticaluser app in an embodiment.

FIG. 45 illustrates the modules in a coordinated-operation instrumentsoftware application in an embodiment.

FIG. 46 illustrates the flow for an operation module in acoordinated-operation instrument app in an embodiment.

FIG. 47 illustrates the flow for a maintenance module in acoordinated-operation instrument app in an embodiment.

FIG. 48 illustrates the modules in an individual-operation instrumentsoftware application in an embodiment.

FIG. 49A illustrates the flow for an operation module in anindividual-operation instrument app in an embodiment.

FIG. 49AA illustrates the flow for an operation module in anindividual-operation instrument app in another embodiment.

FIG. 49B illustrates the flow of results review in an operation modulerelating to a plate reader as an individual-operation instrument app inan embodiment.

FIG. 50 illustrates the modules in a workflow-aid instrument softwareapplication in an embodiment.

FIG. 51 illustrates the flow for a workflow-aid module in a workflow-aidinstrument app in an embodiment.

FIG. 52 is an embodiment of the computing flow of a software automaticupdate for analytical user computers

FIG. 53 is an embodiment of the computing flow of a software automaticupdate for analytical instrument computers.

FIG. 54 is an embodiment of an example of a non-bioanalytical use of thedisclosed architecture for software modules in a chef app.

FIG. 55 is an embodiment of a user experience flow through a mealplanner module beginning with chef app.

FIG. 56 illustrates a system for implementing a methodical userinterface according to an embodiment.

FIG. 57 illustrates a process for navigating a hierarchical menu treevia a user interface.

FIG. 58 illustrates a first embodiment of a mobile device foraggregating information on a mobile-based user interface displaydepicted in a portrait orientation.

FIG. 59A illustrates a second embodiment of the mobile deviceillustrated in FIG. 58 depicting a standard content view.

FIG. 59B illustrates a detailed view of the menu portion illustrated inFIG. 59A.

FIG. 60 illustrates a third embodiment of the mobile device illustratedin FIG. 58 depicting a detailed content view.

FIG. 61 illustrates a first embodiment of a mobile device foraggregating information on a mobile-based user interface display,depicted in a landscape orientation.

FIG. 62 illustrates an alternative embodiment of a mobile device foraggregating information on a mobile-based user interface display.

FIG. 63 illustrates a first embodiment of a method for aggregatinginformation on a mobile-based user interface display.

FIG. 64 illustrates a first embodiment of a system and computer readablemedium for aggregating information on a mobile-based user interfacedisplay.

FIG. 65 illustrates a first embodiment of an aggregating computingsystem for implementing the systems, methods, and apparatuses foraggregating information on a mobile-based user interface display.

FIG. 66 illustrates a detailed view of the aggregating computing systemillustrated in FIG. 65.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments described herein provide technical solutions to varioustechnical problems via improvements to existing technologies and thecreation of wholly new technologies. Among the technical problemsaddressed by embodiments discussed herein include inefficiencies ofconventional user interfaces and difficulties in integrating disparateportions of a process workflow.

Improvements to user interfaces discussed herein provide practicalapplications of technical solutions to problems in conventional userinterfaces related to user inefficiency, accuracy, repeatability, andcomputing inefficiency. The technical solutions provided herein improveeach of these aspects through the use of inventive user interfacemethods and techniques. In particular, technical solutions provided byuser interfaces disclosed herein provide users with more efficient meansof navigating through menu systems for complex processes.

User interfaces for electronic devices, implemented for human-computerinteractions or communications, often include a series of menus or likechoice options, which a user selects (e.g., choose a series of optionsin a hierarchical manner) in order to have a computer or like deviceperform a desired function. In some embodiments, depending on types ofapplications, the amount of information or the number of menu choicespresented to the user can become overwhelming. A wide range of availablemenu options can cause the user to try different choices or navigate tovarious menu selection hierarchies, before finding a correct or desiredseries of choices. In some instance, out of 100% of user interfacechoice and functionality options available to the user, only about 10%are used. However, presented with all of the 100% of the options, theuser may have difficulty in deciding where to navigate to in order tofind that 10% which is relevant to the user. Also, because a selectedmenu choice affects the next choice to be made down a path of menuchoices, a user switching between choices will mean that the user alsonavigates to a number of different paths leading from that choice. Suchtrial and error, in scrolling and paging through many different options,which may occur during user interface navigation, is time consuming,costly and inefficient.

Systems, methods and techniques in the present disclosure may provide auser interface that guides a user through choice options to be selectedvia a user interface display or another presentation device, with lesstime to find a correct selection. In this way, fewer attempts are madeat incorrect selections, and shorter amounts of time in user navigationis taken to complete a desired computing function or goal. In aspects, auser interface in the present disclosure may present the user with aselective limited number of options out of all available options in aspecific manner, and guide the user through those options, streamliningoperations and providing the user to be able to focus on reaching adesired computing functionality more efficiently. In another aspect, auser interface in the present disclosure can more directly connect theuser to an application.

The embodiments and technical solutions provide practical applicationsof specific visual principles to aid users in navigating the menus andsystems described herein. Such visual principles include theminimization of visible content and maximization of background or voidspace so as to reduce visual clutter and emphasize the area of interest.By providing a dark or otherwise uniform background and increasingcontrast between the content and background, the user's attention can bedrawn to the appropriate areas.

The embodiments and technical solutions provide practical applicationsof specific design principles to aid users in navigating the menus andsystems described herein. Design principles embodied herein include, forexample, minimizing a number of menus and/or selections a user mustnavigate at any one time.

Further design principles include presenting a user with a single newchoice at any given time while providing optionality for revisitingpreviously made choices with ease. This principle may be implemented viaa two portion display system. An active portion may be configured todisplay a current user choice, while an historical portion is configuredto display information related to previous choices. Together, the activeportion and the historical portion may provide a “direct workflow mode.”The active portion presenting the current user choice may have a hardlimit on the number of menu items displayed, e.g., seven, five, three(or any other number), while other potential items from the same menuare displayed elsewhere. Previously selected choices (and menus fromwhich those selections were made) may be displayed to a user in a nestedfashion or a stacked fashion. A nested fashion series of previouslynavigated menus may be presented in the manner of Russian nesting dolls(matryoshka), with each previously selected menu item being expandedupon in a displayed submenu. The nested or stacked previously selectedmenu items may also provide a breadcrumb trail illustrating to a userthe pathway taken to arrive at the current menu. In certain embodiments,an indicator bar can be provided to draw a user's attention to thepreviously selected menu items. For example, when the previouslyselected menu items are arranged in a stacked fashion, the indicator barcan be used to help vertically align one or more menus and/or menuitems. For example, an indicator bar (located below an “Add/Remove”item), may help to draw the user's attention to and align the followingitems: “Manage,” “Legal, and “Add/Remove.” In certain embodiments, theindicator bar can be depicted to resemble a watch hand. Moreover, theindicator bar can include color-coded states (e.g., red to indicate anerror state and blue to indicate a non-error state). In certainembodiments, the color-coded state can be depicted within a portion ofthe indicator bar by illuminating pixels of one or more colors. In oneexample, the color-coded state can be provided within the middle portionof the indicator bar, although this state can be displayed in otherportions of the UI display as well.

Embodiments herein maintain a consistent look throughout the use of aninterface, regardless of a task or process to be completed, for exampleby maintaining consistent screen locations for menus so a user does nothave to search different locations for menu. In other words, relevantmenus are moved to active portions of the screen to bring them to theuser's attention as they are needed. In embodiments, the active portionof the screen remains centered top to bottom and left to right. Infurther embodiments, the size and shape of the menuing interface isaltered according to a device or screen on which it is viewed. Menus maybe spread horizontally on wider screens and/or spread vertically ontaller/narrower screens.

Embodiments discussed herein improve user productivity by providingefficiency and accuracy improvements through enhancement of severalaspects of the user experience. User interfaces described herein focusthe user on the most-likely use cases while minimizing distractionscaused by lesser utilized options. Such a focus permits the userinterface to minimize visual distractions and keep the user focused onthe most relevant menu choices. User interfaces described herein seek tolead the user through the user interface from one step to the next whileeliminating sticking points where a user may wonder what to do next. Inembodiments herein, the navigational path of the user through theinterface system remains transparent to the user to facilitate selectingalternative options or backing out of a current menu. Throughout theprocess of using the user interface, a user may have the option ofviewing, in a non-distracting way, alternative pathways through theprocess. Accordingly, a core function of the user interface software asprovided herein is to reduce the total amount of information presentedto the user at any one time while increasing the total amount ofrelevant information presented to the user at any one time. Additionalinformation and options, for low use cases, remain available in anon-distracting presentation style. Such decisions, regarding whatinformation to present through the user interface at any given time maybe guided in advance through predetermined menu workflows and/or may beinfluenced and updated through analysis of prior user actions andchoices.

Computer functionality may also be improved via embodiments providedherein. For instance, by focusing on a limited number of options,resource usage of devices (e.g., user devices and/or server devices)which may be involved in running the user interface can be reduced. Forinstance, memory usage, processor resources usage such as a centralprocessing unit (CPU) usage, hard drive or like persistent storageusage, bandwidth needed for communications between devices (e.g., deviceto device, device to server, server to server), may be reduced. Anability to directly navigate to or reach correct selections or a path ofselections, for example, without many trial and error navigations, canalso increase communications efficiency between devices and servers, forinstance, decrease internet communications and cost associated with suchcommunications.

Further embodiments discussed herein relate to the integration ofvarious process workflow aspects. As discussed herein, “processworkflow” may relate to instrumentation (including bioinstrumentation)testing workflows, manufacturing workflows, analysis workflows, and/orany workflow that may involve one or more pieces of equipmentcontrolled, at least partially, by one or more computing systems. Inadditional embodiments, process workflows consistent with embodimentsdiscussed herein may include the use of one or more consumables.

Computing systems consistent with the user interfaces and processworkflow management systems discussed herein may include variousarchitectures, including but not limited to single computing devicesystems, desktop computing systems, laptop computing systems, tabletcomputing systems, mobile device computing systems, thin clientcomputing systems, cloud based computing systems, server computingsystems, multiple device computing systems, device/printer systems,device/server computing systems, systems including multiple devices andserver(s), or any other suitable computing system.

The process interface systems described herein serve to increase useraccuracy, efficiency, and satisfaction by providing a user interfacethat is faster to use, reduces time to find correct menu items, reducesselection of incorrect menu items, decreases overall workflow time. Ascompared to traditional systems that may provide immediate access to100% of options, of which only 10% are frequently used, systemsdescribed herein may provide immediate access to only those functionsthat are frequently used (e.g., in 50, 55, 60, 65, 70, 75, 80, 85, 90,95, 95+%, 70-95+%, 80-95+% of use cases.) In turn, the solutionsprovided herein serve to increase computing efficiency, decrease memoryusage, decrease utilization of CPU, hard drive, power, andcommunications resources.

User interface systems discussed herein may be provided in the form ofgraphical user interfaces (GUIs), text-based user interface systems,virtual, augmented, or mixed reality (VAMR) interface systems,projection based systems, gesture controlled systems, and/or any othertype of visual user interfaces. Collectively, user interface systems,consistent with embodiments hereof may be referred to as “methodicaluser interfaces” (MUIs). MUIs may include graphical user interfaces(GUIs), text-based user interface systems, virtual, augmented, or mixedreality (VAMR) interface systems, projection based systems, gesturecontrolled systems, and/or any other type of visual user interfaces.Although some of the principles discussed herein are discussedspecifically with respect to, for example, a GUI, no limitation isintended, and the principles discussed herein may equally be applied toother interface systems.

MUIs described herein refer to “displays,” “interfaces,” and “userinterfaces.” As used herein, unless stated otherwise, the terms“display,” “interface,” and “user interface,” refer to the text, images,visual components, interactive elements, and any other visual aspectsthat are shown or displayed on a screen, projection, or other visualdisplay hardware. It is thus understood that “displays” and“interfaces,” as used herein, may be provided via any type of visualdisplay hardware, screen(s) and/or projector. For convenience, menus,interfaces, and other visual items are referred to herein as beingviewed on a MUI or displayed by a MUI. It is understood that suchreferences indicate that the MUI is visually presented via hardwaredevices as discussed herein.

As described in greater detail below, user interface systems describedherein may use various visual components for presenting menu items. Forexample, visual components may include vertical “wheels” or horizontalwheels that rotate through various menu items. The use of a “wheel” as avisual component, as described herein, refers to the way in whichprominent (emphasized) and receded (deemphasized) options are presentedto the user. Wheel-type visual components can be understood as a virtualwheel with the rim facing the user and with multiple menu items disposedon the rim of the virtual wheel. Wheel-type visual components may or maynot include any visual indicators of the presence of a wheel. Wheel-typevisual components may present a prominent option to the user in a waythat draws attention (i.e., on the portion of the wheel “closest” to theuser) while other, receded options, are presented in a way that does notdraw attention. Prominent menu items may be highlighted in a differentcolor, presented in a different font, presented in a larger font, orotherwise visually marked to draw attention. As the virtual wheel isrotated, the currently prominent menu item rotates away from the user(either clockwise or counterclockwise) and a currently receded menu itembecomes the new prominent option. In embodiments, the receded menu itemsclosest to the prominent menu item may be displayed to draw moreattention than receded menu items further from the prominent menu item.For example, menu items may decrease in size or brightness based ontheir distance from the currently prominent menu item. As the “wheel” is“rotated,” receded menu items may fade from view. In this fashion, thevirtual wheel provides the user with the sense and feel that the menuitems are all disposed on an actual wheel. Visual components may furtherinclude horizontal or vertical sliders that slide through various menuitems. Similarly, to wheels as discussed above, sliders may be used toprovide a prominent menu item and receded, or less prominent menu items.In embodiments, sliders may differ from wheels in that receded menuitems do not appear to fade from view as the options in the slider areslid through. Further embodiments of wheels and sliders are discussedfurther herein with respect to specific embodiments.

As discussed herein, menu items may variously be “selected,”“highlighted,” and/or “clicked.” As used herein, “highlighting” a menuitem means that the “highlighted” option is prominently displayed to theuser, for example, as a prominent menu item in the center of a wheel.“Highlighting” may include changing the color, size, font, etc., of amenu item to visually emphasize the menu item to the user.“Dehighlighting” a user option may include changing the color, size,font, etc., of a menu item to visually deemphasize the menu item to theuser. A menu item may be highlighted or dehighlighted (e.g., bypresenting a menu item not available for selecting or editing by a user)in response to user action (e.g., via clicking a mouse, touching a touchscreen, spinning a wheel, etc.) and/or may be highlighted ordehighlighted based on an action of the interface (e.g., by presenting ahighlighted default option).

As used herein, “selecting” a menu item means that a menu item has beenchosen by the user and that the user interface has proceeded with one ormore menu steps in accordance with the selection. “Selecting” a menuitem causes the computer system to execute computer instructions toadvance the menu beyond simply “highlighting” the menu item. Forexample, “selecting” a menu item may cause a new menu to be displayedbased on the selection. Selected menu items may be highlighted afterselection but highlighting of a menu item does not necessarily includeselecting the menu item.

In some embodiments, a menu item may be selected or highlighted viaclicking on the menu item. As used herein, “clicking” refers to the useraction of clicking, tapping, or otherwise using an interface device(e.g., mouse, touchscreen, etc.) to indicate or choose a menu item.“Clicking” a menu item, as used herein, differs from “selecting” a menuitem. Clicking refers to the user action of indicating a menu item,while selecting refers to the computer functionality associated with theselection of the menu item.

In some embodiments of a system in accordance herewith, a menu item maybe selected through clicking. Clicking on a menu item may cause thesystem to advance to the next series of menu items. In other aspects ofthe disclosed system, clicking a menu item serves to highlight the menuitem, but does not select it to advance the system to the next menuitem.

Menu items may be described herein as “selectable.” A “selectable” menuitem refers to a menu item that a user can interact with, either throughselecting it or highlighting it. Selectable menu items may be displayedin a fashion that indicates that they are selectable, through changes incoloring, highlighting, fonts, etc. Menu items may be described hereinas “unselectable.” “Unselectable” menu items refer to menu items that auser cannot currently interact with through selection or highlighting.Unselectable menu items may be displayed in a fashion that indicatesthat they are unselectable, through changes in coloring, highlighting,fonts, etc.

Menu items may also be described as “past selected” and “pastunselected.” A “past selected” menu item refers to a menu item that wasselected to arrive at the current menu interface display. It is notrequired that a “past selected” menu item have been actively selected bya user. If the system, by programmed default, brings a user to a menulevel below a top level, a menu item or choice in the current pathwaymay be indicated as “past-selected,” even if a user has not activelyselected it during the current session. A “past unselected” menu itemrefers to a menu item that was not selected to arrive at the currentmenu interface display. For example, where a user has selected a firstmenu item and has not selected a second menu item, the system mayproceed to display a subsequent menu or submenu responsive to theselection of the first menu item in an active portion of the MUI. In ahistorical portion of the MUI, the system may display the first menuitem as a past selected menu item and the second menu item as a pastunselected menu item. The past unselected menu item may be displayed asselectable.

For example, a user may scroll a slider or spin a wheel through variousmenu items. A user may settle the wheel or slider such that a specificmenu item has been highlighted. In embodiments, the specific menu itemmay require further user interaction (e.g., a single or double click) tobe “selected,” which causes the MUI to present a new set of menu itemsor submenu items responsive to the selection. In such an embodiment, auser would spin a wheel or scroll a slider to move a desired menu itemto be the highlighted prominent menu item. Then, the user would click,double click, or otherwise indicate approval of the highlighted menuitem as a selection to cause the presentation of the next menu orsubmenu. In embodiments, the specific menu item may be “selected” at thesame time that it is highlighted. In such an embodiment, spinning thewheel or scrolling the slider to move the desired menu item to thehighlighted prominent menu position would cause the associated submenuto be presented as soon as the desired menu item is highlighted.

Selection or highlighting a menu item, as discussed herein, may becaused by directly choosing (i.e., clicking, touching, etc.) on the menuitem, wherever it may be on a wheel, slider, and/or list of items,regardless of whether it is a prominent or receded menu item. Selectionor highlighting a menu item may also occur responsive to usermanipulation of various visual components to cause the menu item to moveto a position where it is to be highlighted or selected. For example, auser may spin a wheel or move a slider until a particular menu item isprominent and highlighted. Manipulation of visual components and/ordirect choosing may be implemented through the use of any suitable userinput device, including touchscreens, mice, keyboards, arrow keys, gazedetection system, motion detection systems, gesture detection systems,etc.

Features of embodiments of the interface may be referred to as a “firstportion” and a “second portion.” These terms refer to specific portionsof the displayed user interface at various times and are not required tobe fixed to specific places on the screen. As used herein, a “firstportion” may also be referred to as an “active portion.” The “firstportion” or “active portion” represents the portion of the MUIdisplaying the most current or newest set of menu items. “First portion”and “active portion” may be used interchangeably herein. The “secondportion” may also be referred to as an “historical portion.” The “secondportion” or “historical portion” represents the portion of the interfacedisplaying previously viewed menus and previously selected andun-selected menu items. “Second portion” and “historic” portion may beused interchangeably herein.

FIG. 1 illustrates a method of interactively navigating a user through apath of menu choices on a user interface in one embodiment. The methodmay be performed automatically by at least one hardware processor. Themethod facilitates moving a user through a system by asking questions,showing past choice or choices the user has made along with otheroption(s) that were not chosen while drilling down through additionalchoice(s) based on the initial choice. As used herein, “askingquestions” refers to presenting a user with one or more menu choices toselect from. The method allows the user to continue down a path or jumpto a different path, going back in time to a choice made in one or moreearlier step(s) or going back to the latest point at which the user hasmade a choice. The user interface in one embodiment presents and allowsthe user to see the past or prior choice(s) that have been made and notmade, for example at every step of the path, regardless of where theuser is on the path, all on the same screen. The user interface forexample, presents an outline of the user's menu choice path that alsoincludes menu item(s) not chosen. The user interface methodology allowsfor more efficient navigation, leading the user along a path, allowingthe user to see the path the user is going through, and allowing theuser to deviate from a path that has been set for the user to adifferent path. The user interface methodology allows the user to beable to see backward and forward breadcrumb(s), and where the user isgoing and where the user could go.

As discussed herein, menus are presented as a series of hierarchicalmenu trees. Each level of the menu tree includes multiple menus leadingto other menus. Accordingly, a first level of the menu tree includes aplurality of first menus, a second level of the menu tree includes aplurality of second menus, a third level of the menu tree includes aplurality of third menus, etc. This structure continues to an executionmenu level. In some discussions herein, a first menu is referred tosimply as a menu, while subsequent menu layers in the tree are referredto as submenus, sub-submenus and so on. At time, multiple layers ofmenus below a current menu may be collectively referred to as submenus.Thus, the submenus of a first menu may include a plurality of secondmenus, a plurality of third menus, a plurality of fourth menus, aplurality of execution menus, and so on. An example of a hierarchicalmenu tree structure is illustrated in FIG. 2K. As used herein, withreference to the hierarchical menu tree, each level is referred to as a“menu” even where it does not present a literal menu to the user. Forexample, a “menu” may present only an “execute” button to implement aprocess designed throughout other portions of the menu. Another “menu”may present a tutorial, for example.

Each of the numbered menus includes multiple menu items or choices, witheach item or choice pointing to a new menu at a lower level. Thus, theitems in a first menu may each point to one of the plurality of secondmenus. In some embodiments, a menu layer may be skipped. For example, anoption in a first menu may point to one of the plurality of third menus.

In embodiments, each menu may also include, for display in the MUI,additional information. Additional menu information may provide a userinformation about items in the menu and/or general context regarding themenu. For example, where a menu presents a user with save file options,additional information may be provided that indicates remaining diskspace. In another example, where a menu presents a user with optionspertaining to assays to be run, additional information may be providedon available consumables related to the displayed assays.

At the execution menu level, i.e., a last level in a series of menus, auser may select execution menu choices or items. These choices or itemsdo not lead to further menus, but instead represent selections ofparameters for the process the menu tree is intended to facilitate.Selection of execution menu choices or items causes the system toperform a function related to the selected menu choices or items. Forexample, when using an assay design menu tree, execution menu choicesmay include options such as file name, assay parameters, reagentchoices, etc.

In embodiments, execution menus may facilitate the interface between theMUI software and the physical world. Execution menus may provide, forexample, execute commands that are output by the methodical userinterface control system 1102 to connected systems or instruments toimplement processes that were designed through use of the MUI. Inexamples, such execute commands may cause manufacturing systems to beginmanufacturing parts, may cause assay instruments to begin conductingassays, may cause design systems to transmit design specifications, etc.

In embodiments, execution menus may provide user walkthroughs ortutorials. For example, after designing a workflow or process, anexecution menu may provide a walkthrough or tutorial coinciding with theworkflow, offering text based, audio based, video based, and image basedtutorial steps to walk the user through each step of the designedworkflow or process.

In embodiments, execution menus may provide walkthroughs and/ortutorials in conjunction with execution commands issued to physicalworld instruments and machines. For example, in a modular laboratorysystem, such a combination may provide instructions to a user to load amachine (e.g., with assay plates and reagents) and then provideexecution commands to the machine to run the process. As new steps inthe process require physical intervention by the user (moving assayplates, etc.), the MUI, at the execution level, may provide the userwith additional instructions (text based, video based, image based,audio based, etc.) to advance the process. In embodiments, userinstructions and notifications to implement a user intervention portionof a process may be provided via various communication means, including,for example, text (SMS, MMS), e-mail, phone call, instant message, slackmessage, and any other type of messaging protocol. Such variouscommunication means may be useful, for example, when portions of themachine processing take some time to complete and a user may not wish toremain at the process location during processing. Accordingly, where auser has initiated a process that takes several hours, they may receivea text message indicating that their intervention is required to advancethe process.

These types of “cobot” interactions, wherein the MUI integrates thephysical world actions of both human operators and automated machinesmay be applied to various processes or workflows, including laboratoryworkflows, manufacturing workflows, food production workflows (e.g.,beer production, bread production, etc.), shipping and logisticworkflows (e.g., box filling and picking, packaging, etc.). Theseautomated machines can further include non-human machines, such asrobots, drones, robotic-based machines, or other autonomous, orsemi-autonomous machines.

As used herein, “display” of a menu includes display, within the MUI, ofone or more items in the menu. Display of a menu does not requiredisplay of all items or options in the menu. The menu items or itemsthat make up the first menu remain the same, regardless of whether eachmenu item is displayed. As discussed in greater detail below, certainmenu items may be excluded or limited for various reasons. As discussedherein, a specified “first menu” or “second menu” may be relocated tovarious portions of the screen. When relocated, the first menu maycontinue to display the same set of first menu items and/or may displaya different set of first menu items.

As discussed herein, menus may also be referred to based on theirtemporal status. A “current menu” refers to a menu that is currentlyactive in the active portion of the MUI from which a user is prompted toselect an option. A “past menu” refers to a menu from which a user haspreviously selected options. Past menus may be displayed in thehistorical portion of the MUI. A “subsequent menu” refers to a next menuthat becomes active after the current menu becomes a past menu. Forexample, a first menu may be displayed as a current menu. After aselection has been made from the first menu, the first menu may then berelocated to become a past menu. A subsequent menu, a second menuindicated by the selection made from the first menu, may then bedisplayed as a current menu. Current menus may be displayed in the firstor active portion of a user interface while past menus may be displayedin the second or historical portion of a user interface.

In the historical portion, the menu items of each past menu may bedisplayed in the MUI in a linear fashion. All of the menu items fromthat menu level are displayed in a single line (horizontal or vertical).Each set of past menu items may be displayed in such a linear fashionwhile the menus as a whole may be displayed in a stacked or nestedfashion. This feature is shown, e.g., in FIG. 2C which shows MENU ITEMSdisplayed in a linear fashion and SUBMENU ITEMS displayed in a linearfashion. The relationship between the MENU ITEMS and the SUBMENU ITEMSis a stacked or nested relation. Accordingly, among a single menu level,the menu items are adapted to be displayed in a linear fashion while thepreviously navigated and subsequent menu levels are adapted to bedisplayed in a nested fashion.

A menu of choices may be displayed in a graphical wheel that rotates thechoices in a direction, for example, horizontal or vertical (forexample, left and right, up and down) or another direction. In anotheraspect, a menu of choices may be displayed as a graphical slider thatslides the choices in a direction, for example, horizontal or vertical(for example, left and right, up and down) or another direction. Forinstance, an initial menu level (first level) may be displayed in thehorizontal and slide left and right and the next menu level (secondlevel) may be displayed in the vertical and rotate up and down. Yet inanother aspect, menus of choices may be displayed as a series ofconcentric circles, each menu level displayed as a circle with menuchoices (also referred to as options or menu items). For instance, aninitial menu level (first level) may be displayed in the center circle,the next menu level (second level) may be displayed in the next circle(second circle) that surrounds the center circle, further next menulevel (third level) may be displayed in yet another circle thatsurrounds the second circle, and so forth. Still yet, menus of choicesmay be displayed or visualized as a graphical decision tree with nodesand edges. Each level of the graphical decision tree may represent amenu level with choices.

In one embodiment, the wheel and/or the slider need not rotate fully,for example, do not make a full revolution or circle around. Forinstance, the wheel and/or the slider rotates or slides from a beginningmenu item to an ending menu item, and back from the ending menu item tothe beginning menu item. In this way, for example, the beginning and endof the menu are always apparent because the two do not merge or cometogether. This technique decreases processing time because the wheeland/or the slider is able to convey (and a user is able to immediatelyunderstand) the full menu of choices with clear indication as to whereor which is the first menu item and where or which is the last menu itemin the choices presented by the wheel and/or the slider.

In further embodiments, the wheel and/or sliders may rotate fully topermit a user to easily access the beginning of a menu after reviewingthe entire menu. In such embodiments, a visual indicator may be providedto indicate that the menu has been rotated through a full rotation andback to the beginning.

In various embodiments, the terms “software protocol” and “computerinstructions” are used to describe software instructions or computercode configured to carry out various tasks and operations. As usedherein, the term “manager” refers broadly to a collection of softwareinstructions or code configured to cause one or more processors toperform one or more functional tasks. For convenience, the variousmanagers, computer instructions, and software protocols will bedescribed as performing various operations or tasks, when, in fact, themanagers, computer instructions, and software protocols program hardwareprocessors to perform the operations and tasks. Although described invarious places as “software” it is understood that “managers,” “softwareprotocols,” and “computer instructions,” as used herein, may equally beimplemented as firmware, software, hardware, or any combination thereoffor instructing a computer or other electronic device for performingand/or carrying out a series of steps and/or instructions. Furthermore,embodiments herein are described in terms of method steps, functionalsteps, and other types of occurrences, such as the display of menus, theselection of options, etc. Although not explicitly stated in everyinstance, it will be understood that these actions occur according tocomputer instructions or software protocols executed by one or morecomputer processors.

Functionality of the managers and software protocols discussed hereinmay be provided by the issuance of one or more commands. As discussedherein, “commands” issued by managers and software protocols refer tothe signals and instructions provided to various aspects of thecomputing system to cause various actions to occur. Commands may beissued from one manager to another manager and/or may be issued to othercomponents of the system. For example, a manager may provide a commandto cause display of certain visual components within a menuinginterface. Such a command may be directed towards a physical displayscreen and may include the required signals and instructions to generatethe visual components. As used herein, when a manager is described asperforming an action or carrying out certain functionality, it is to beunderstood that the manager has issued a command to cause such action orfunctionality to occur.

In various embodiments, the term “module” is used herein to refer to aspecific suite of software protocols and computer instructions togenerate, maintain, and operate the multiple components of a MUI asdescribed herein. The one or more processors described herein may beconfigured to execute multiple software protocols so as to provide amethodical user interface module. As used herein, “methodical userinterface module” refers to any of a subset of modules providingspecific user interfaces. For example, an admin console module, audittrail module, and reader module are provided as specific methodical userinterface modules to carry out tasks related to system administration,auditing, and plate reading, respectively. Each MUI module may beunderstood to include at least a hierarchical menu tree includingmultiple layered menus. Each module may further include preferreddefault visual components, preferred default exclusion and limitationlists, and other features specific to the module. Other modules arediscussed in greater detail below and throughout the present disclosure.Throughout the present disclosure, multiple aspects of various MUImodules are discussed. The discussed aspects of any specific MUI moduleare non-exclusive and non-limiting and may equally be applied to anyother MUI module. Accordingly, any MUI feature discussed herein, eitherbroadly or with respect to a specific module, may also be appliedbroadly to the MUI in general and/or to any other specific MUI modulediscussed herein.

Referring now to FIG. 56, a methodical user interface control system1102 consistent with embodiments hereof is illustrated. The methodicaluser interface control system 1102 includes one or more processors 1110(also interchangeably referred to herein as processors 1110,processor(s) 1110, or processor 1110 for convenience), one or morestorage device(s) 1120, and/or other components. The CPU 2 (see FIG. 19)and the hardware processor 1804 (see FIG. 18) may be examples of aprocessor 1110 configured as described herein. In other embodiments, thefunctionality of the processor may be performed by hardware (e.g.,through the use of an application specific integrated circuit (“ASIC”),a programmable gate array (“PGA”), a field programmable gate array(“FPGA”), etc.), or any combination of hardware and software. Thestorage device 1120 includes any type of non-transitory computerreadable storage medium (or media) and/or non-transitory computerreadable storage device. Such computer readable storage media or devicesmay store computer readable program instructions for causing a processorto carry out one or more methodologies described here. The memory 4 (seeFIG. 19) and the memory device 1802 (see FIG. 18) may be examples of astorage device 1120. Examples of the computer readable storage medium ordevice may include, but is not limited to an electronic storage device,a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an electromagneticstorage device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitablecombination thereof, for example, such as a computer diskette, a harddisk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), anerasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a staticrandom access memory (SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only memory(CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, but notlimited to only those examples. In embodiments, the storage device 1120may include multiple storage devices 1120. Multiple storage devices 1120consistent with embodiments hereof may be collocated and/ornon-collocated. For example, one physical system my contain a firstmemory storage device 1120 and a second physical system may contain asecond memory storage device 1120.

In embodiments, the processor 1110 and the storage device 1120 may beimplemented via a cloud computing platform or other form of distributedcomputing. In such implementations, the processor and the storage devicemay each include a plurality of processors and storage devices forcarrying out the tasks and functions described herein.

The processor 1110 is programmed by one or more computer programinstructions and/or software protocols, referred to as “managers” storedon the storage device 1120. For example, the processor 1110 isprogrammed by a display manager 1050, an input manager 1052, a menumanager 1054, a user manager 1056, an exclusion manager 1058, a networkmanager 1060, and a data storage manager 1064. It will be understoodthat the functionality of the various managers as discussed herein isrepresentative and not limiting. Furthermore, the functionality of thevarious managers may be combined into one or more modules, applications,programs, services, tasks, scripts, libraries, applications, orexecutable code, as may be required.

The managers as discussed herein may be implemented to manage a MUI invarious embodiments to complete various tasks that require processworkflows. Although various software implementations of the MUI aredescribed herein with respect to one or more specific embodiments, themethods and functionalities provided by the aforementioned managers maybe implemented to provide MUIs for any process workflow. Theaforementioned managers may be functionally implemented through softwarelibraries

The various components of the methodical user interface control system1102 work in concert to provide a user with a methodical user interfacedisplay via any type of display hardware, including screens,projections, touchscreens, headsets, etc. In embodiments, the methodicaluser interface control system 1102 implements one or more softwareprotocols for interactively navigating a user through path(s) of menuitems, options, or choices in a MUI. The software managers describedabove may include sets of computer instructions, software libraries,dynamic link libraries, application program interfaces, functionlibraries and other compilations of executable code. The methodical userinterface control system 1102 may further include appropriate graphicslibraries containing the graphics required to implement and instantiatethe various visual components described herein. The managers may becustomized for use in a specific implementation through the use ofvarious data structures representative of module information, includingtables, linked lists, databases, b-trees, binary trees, heaps, stacks,queues, hash tables, red-black trees, binomial heaps, Fibonacci heaps,and any other suitable data structure. Accordingly, managers of the MUImay be provided as customizable code libraries configured to interface,interact, and otherwise integrate with additional computer instructionsand data structures for the purpose of providing a MUI module capable ofperforming specific tasks.

The display manager 1050 is a software protocol in operation on themethodical user interface control system 1102. The display manager 1050is configured to manage the methodical user interface display, includingall visual components thereof. Display manager 1050 may be configured toissue commands to cause the display of various menu items as required.

The input manager 1052 is a software protocol in operation on themethodical user interface control system 1102. The input manager 1052 isconfigured to manage all inputs received by the methodical userinterface control system 1102, including, but not limited to, userinputs and inputs from other systems. The input manager 1052 may beconfigured to issue commands to other managers of the methodical userinterface control system 1102 according to inputs received. Useractions, such as clicking and other screen interactions cause the inputmanager 1052 to receive a signal indicative of the user interaction.Receipt of such a signal causes the appropriate manager of themethodical user interface control system 1102 to provide a command inresponse to thereby cause one or more actions, including MUI navigation,menu display, etc., as discussed herein. For ease of explanation, suchinteractions and user inputs may be referred to as causing a specificresponse, when in fact the specific response is caused by the methodicaluser interface control system 1102 responsive to the interaction or userinput.

The menu manager 1054 is a software protocol in operation on themethodical user interface control system 1102. The menu manager 1054 isconfigured to manage the hierarchical menu trees and all menu itemsassociated with the menu trees. The menu manager 1054 is configured toselect appropriate menu items for display, to determine a next menu todisplay, and otherwise manage all aspects of navigation through a menutree. The menu manager 1054 may be configured to issue commands to othermanagers of the methodical user interface control system 1102 accordingto menu navigational requirements.

The user manager 1056 is a software protocol in operation on themethodical user interface control system 1102. The user manager 1056 isconfigured to manage user access to the methodical user interfacecontrol system 1102. The user manager 1506, for example, manages userauthorization, including the maintenance of user authorization records,the validation of user credentials, and other required userauthentication tasks.

The exclusion manager 1058 is a software protocol in operation on themethodical user interface control system 1102. The exclusion manager1058 is configured to manage menu item exclusions and limitations. Asdiscussed herein, menu items may be excluded or limited based on variousfactors. The exclusion manager 1058 may be configured to issue commandsto implement such exclusions and limitations.

The network manager 1060 is a software protocol in operation on themethodical user interface control system 1102. The network manager 1060is configured to establish, maintain, and manage all networkcommunications between the methodical user interface control system 1102and various other system components discussed herein. The establishedcommunications pathway may utilize any appropriate network transferprotocol and provide for one way or two-way data transfer. The networkmanager 1060 may establish as many network communications as required tocommunicate with all system components as necessary.

The data storage manager 1064 is a software protocol in operation on themethodical user interface control system 1102. The data storage manager1064 is configured to store, retrieve, archive, manipulate, and manageall data structures and data storage devices that the methodical userinterface control system 1102 may interface with. The data storagemanager 1064 is configured to issue commands to any of the various datastorage devices discussed herein to manage the storage and retrieval ofdata.

The above descriptions of the display manager 1050, input manager 1052,menu manager 1054, user manager 1056, exclusion manager 1058, networkmanager 1060, and data storage manager 1064 provide an overview of thecapabilities and tasks of these managers. The managers are not limitedby the above description, and, in various embodiments as discussedbelow, may have additional, different, and/or more capabilities. Thedescribed structure of the methodical user interface control system 1102is by way of example only, and it is to be understood that the variousfunctionalities and capabilities of the computer instruction programmedprocessors described herein may be carried out, implemented, or effectedby a software system of alternative structure.

The methodical user interface control system 1102 may present menuchoices among one or more hierarchical menu levels, wherein each menulevel can include one or more menu items or choices. Hierarchical menulevels, as described herein, refer to the multiple levels in a menuingsystem. A selection in a first, highest, menu level causes navigation toa lower hierarchical level, i.e., second menu, a submenu, or sub-level.Selection within the second menu or submenu causes navigation to a stilllower hierarchical level, i.e., a third menu or sub-submenu orsub-sub-level. Hierarchical menu structures may include any suitablenumber of levels. In some embodiments, selection at one level may causenavigation to a level one, two, three or more levels below the currentlevel.

Each menu may present options in an active portion of the interface. Themenu choices may be selectable, representing options for the user toselect. Selection of a menu choice or option may trigger the display orpresentation of a subsequent, following, or submenu, which may includeseveral menu choices or submenu choices of its own. As the user selectsmenu options, that lead to new menus, the menu items of the old menu maybe moved from the active portion to a historical portion of theinterface, allowing the user to easily move to new menu choices whileretaining knowledge of previous menu choices. These features aredescribed in greater detail below with respect to FIGS. 2A-2O, FIG. 3,and FIG. 57.

FIG. 57 is a flow chart showing a process 5200 of navigating a path ofhierarchical menu levels adapted for output to a user interface, such asa GUI, MUI, and or any other type of UI discussed herein. The process5200 is performed on a computer system having one or more physicalprocessors programmed with computer program instructions that, whenexecuted by the one or more physical processors, cause the computersystem to perform the method. The one or more physical processors arereferred to below as simply the processor. In embodiments, the process5200 is carried out via the methodical user interface control system1102 as described herein. The methodical user interface control system1102 represents an example of a hardware and software combinationconfigured to carry out the process 5200, but implementations of theprocess 5200 are not limited to the hardware and software combination ofthe methodical user interface control system 1102. The process 5200 mayalso be carried out and/or implemented by any other suitable computersystem as discussed herein. Description of the process 5200 is notlimiting, and the various operations may be altered or revised inaccordance with embodiments described herein.

In an operation 5202, the process 5200 includes providing a firstdisplay command. The display manager 1050 provides the first displaycommand for the display of a first menu having one or moreuser-selectable items to be displayed on a first portion of a UIdisplay. The first menu may be displayed in the first portion accordingto any of the visual components disclosed herein, for example, awheel-type visual component. The selectable items of the first menu maybe determined, for example, by the menu manager 1054 as discussedherein.

In an operation 5204, the process 5200 includes receiving a selection.The input manager 1052 receives a selection of a menu item from thefirst menu according to an input provided to the system. The input maybe a user selection and/or may be an automated selection as discussedherein. A user selection may be received, for example, from a userclicking on a highlighted or emphasized menu item. Upon selection, themenu item may be a past-selected menu item.

In an operation 5206, the process 5200 includes providing a relocationcommand. The menu manager 1054 provides a relocation command for thefirst menu to be relocated from the first portion of the UI display tothe second portion of the UI display. The relocation command may beprovided responsive to the selection received. Upon relocation, the menuitems of the first menu include the one or more past-selected menuitem(s) and past-unselected menu item(s) that were not selected to causethe relocation. Display of the first menu in the second portion may beprovided according to any of the visual components disclosed herein, forexample, a slider-type visual component. The relocation command of themenu manager 1054 may be sufficient to cause an update to the UIdisplay. In another embodiments, the relocation command may be combinedwith and/or include a display command provided by the display manager1050.

In an operation 5208, the process 5200 includes providing a seconddisplay command. The second display command is provided by the displaymanager 1050 responsive to the selection of the menu. The second displaycommand causes a second menu of one or more user-selectable items to bedisplayed on the first portion of the UI display, i.e., after the firstmenu has been relocated. The second menu may be displayed according toany of the visual components disclosed herein, for example, a wheel-typevisual component. In embodiments, the second display command mayincorporate information received from the menu manager 1054 related tohierarchical menu tree navigation. After relocation of the first menuand display of the second menu, the first menu, containing one or morepast-selected and past-unselected menu items of the hierarchical menutree, may be viewed in the second portion concurrently to the secondmenu being viewed in the first portion.

The process 5200 may further include additional or different operationalsteps as described throughout the present disclosure.

Referring to FIG. 1, at an operation 102, a current menu of choices(e.g., a list of menu items) may be displayed on a first portion of theuser interface display. At an operation 104, the user interface allowsthe user to select a menu item from the current menu of choicesdisplayed on the first portion of the user interface display and todrill down through level(s) of menu choices based on selecting a menuitem from a prior level of menu choices. At an operation 106, pastselected and past unselected menu item(s) of the drilled-down levels aredisplayed on a second portion of the user interface display. The pastunselected menu items are displayed as selectable options. The pastselected menu item (or choice) may be also displayed as a selectableoption. At an operation 108, the user interface allows the user to jumpto a different path of menu choices by allowing the user to select apast unselected menu item from a previously navigated menu leveldisplayed on the second portion of the user interface display. The userinterface displays both the first portion and the second portion so thatthey are both viewable on the same screen of the user interface, forexample, viewable concurrently.

In one embodiment, the first portion and the second portion are shiftedto substantially center the first portion displaying the current menu ofchoices on the user interface display while fitting both the firstportion and the second portion on the user interface display. Thus, forexample, the first portion and the second portion need not remain in afixed location of the user interface display during the navigating ordrilling down (or up) through different levels of menu choices.

In one embodiment, the user interface responsive to detecting aselection of a menu item from the current menu of choices, relocates thecurrent menu of choices to the second portion of the user interfacedisplay, and displays on the first portion of the user interface displaya next level of menu choices based on the selection of the menu item.The relocated current menu of choices is shown on the second portion ofthe user interface display and becomes the past selected and pastunselected menu items of a past menu level. The next level of menuchoices is shown on the first portion as the current menu of choices.

As described above, a menu of choices may be displayed as a rotatablegraphical wheel showing menu items (choices or options) in which themenu items on the wheel can be shown as the wheel is rotated. A likegraphical slider in which the menu items on the slider can be shown asthe slider is slid. The action of rotating or sliding may be performedresponsive to a motion of a finger on a touch screen or an input from apointing device or another input device. In another aspect, the actionof rotating or sliding may be performed automatically by the userinterface (or a hardware executing the user interface) in a timedmanner. In one embodiment, the rotating or sliding direction may switchto different orientation as the menu of choices is relocated from thefirst portion to the second portion.

The current menu of choices may be displayed in first visual orientationon the first portion of the user interface display and the drilled-downlevels of menu choices that include the past selected and pastunselected menu items may be displayed on the second portion of the userinterface display in second visual orientation.

In one embodiment, the current menu of choices is displayed as agraphical rotating wheel or a slider that rotates or slides the choicesin a direction of the first visual orientation. In one embodiment, adrilled-down level in the drilled-down levels of menu choices isdisplayed as a graphical rotating wheel or a slider that rotates orslides choices of the drilled-down level in a direction of the secondvisual orientation.

In one embodiment, the second visual orientation is substantiallyorthogonal to the first visual orientation. In one embodiment, the firstvisual orientation is a vertical orientation and the second visualorientation is a horizontal orientation. In another embodiment, thefirst visual orientation is a horizontal orientation and the secondvisual orientation is a vertical orientation.

In one embodiment, the drilled-down levels of menu choices relocated tothe second portion are displayed as a stack of menu levels.

In another embodiment, the first portion and the second portion may bedisplayed as a series of concentric circles. For instance, the firstportion may be displayed as the center circle of the series ofconcentric circles, and the past menu levels as the circles outside orsurrounding the center circle. Each circle representing a menu level mayinclude menu items (choices or options) that are rotatable, forinstance, in order for the user to be able to view all options presenton that menu level. Upon selecting a menu item from the current menu ofchoices, that current menu of choices is relocated to an outer circleand the center circle displays the next menu of choices based on themenu item that is selected. For instance, a circle (e.g., dial) mayinclude window(s) that show the active option and turning the circle(e.g., dial) shows other options in the window(s). While the dialoptions seem finite, the dial options may be infinite. For example, thedial keeps spinning until the last option (or beginning option, ifturning backward) is shown.

In another aspect, the window may be opened up to show the selectedoption as lit up, with one (or more) option to the left and another (ormore) option to the right.

In yet another embodiment, the first portion and the second portion maybe displayed as a graphical decision tree.

In one embodiment, the past selected menu items in the drilled-downlevels displayed on the second portion of the user interface display aredisplayed highlighted relative to the past unselected menu items of thedrilled-down levels displayed on the second portion of the userinterface display.

In an embodiment, upon encountering the last level in a chosen path ofmenu levels, and for example, upon performing a function related to thechosen item in the last menu level, the user interface may return thecurrent menu view to another item in an upper level, for example, thefirst menu list. For instance, the current menu of choices may again bethe first initial menu level and may be displayed in the first portion.In an embodiment, the first and second portions are not independent, butlinked to each other to make navigation more efficient, leading the useralong a path, allowing the user to see the path the user is goingthrough, and allowing deviation from the path that has been set for theuser to a different path, for example, being able to see backwards andforwards breadcrumbs to be able to see where the user has been and wherethe user may go in a path of menu choices. The user interface in oneembodiment is able to guide the user, through efficient path choicessuch that the user need not wander about the user interface trying tofind the next appropriate path or action. Such efficient path guidanceallows for saving computer resources, for instance, in centralprocessing unit (CPU) cycles and memory usage spent in swapping in andout of processor threads and memory elements in a computer running theuser interface.

Referring now to FIGS. 18-19, additional example systems for carryingout the methods described with respect to FIG. 1 are provided. Asdiscussed above, aspects of the systems presented in FIGS. 18 and 19 maybe embodiments and/or implementations of the methodical user interfacecontrol system 1102 shown in FIG. 56.

FIG. 18 illustrates components of a graphical user interface (GUI)system in one embodiment. One or more hardware processors 1804 mayexecute a graphical user interface module and perform the graphical userinterface functions described above, displaying the graphical elementsas described above on a user interface display device 1806 coupled tothe one or more hardware processors 1804. A memory device 1802 may storea list of menus and a list of menu items or choices available for eachof the list of menus, which the graphical user interface module mayaccess to display on the display device 1806. The display device 1806may include a screen device and/or a touchscreen device. One or morepointing devices 1808 may be coupled to the one or more hardwareprocessors 1804 for allowing input via the display device 1806.

The memory device 1802 may be any type of computer readable storagemedia as described herein.

Although FIG. 18 specifically refers to a GUI system, this is by way ofexample only. It is understood that methods and techniques describedherein may also be carried out via other MUIs, including text based,virtual reality based, augmented reality based, mixed reality based, andothers.

For instance, a hardware processor 1804 coupled to the memory device1802 and the display device 1806 may display a current menu of choiceson a first portion of a user interface display, allow a user to select amenu item from the current menu of choices displayed on the firstportion of the user interface display and to drill down through levelsof menu choices based on selecting a menu item from a prior level ofmenu choices. The hardware processor 1804 may also display on a secondportion of the user interface display, past selected and past unselectedmenu items of the drilled-down levels, wherein the past unselected menuitems are displayed as selectable options. The hardware processor 1804may also allow the user to jump to a different path of menu choices byallowing the user to select a past unselected menu item from apreviously navigated menu level displayed on the second portion of theuser interface display.

The hardware processor 1804, for instance, may perform the methoddescribed with respect to FIGS. 1 and 3.

The GUI techniques described above may be implemented using computerlanguages such as JAVA, and JavaScript, but not limited to thoselanguages. In an embodiment, the functionalities and modules of thesystem and methods of the present disclosure may be implemented orcarried out in distributed manner on different processing systems or onany single platform, for instance, accessing data stored locally or indistributed manner on a computer network. Similarly, software protocolsand managers of the present disclosure may be implemented or carried outin distributed manner on different processing systems or on any singleplatform, for instance, accessing data stored locally or in distributedmanner on a computer network.

The GUI techniques may be carried out on any type of computing device,e.g., a desktop computer, laptop computer, mobile device (e.g., androidor Apple IOS), tablet, and use any type of interface, e.g., mouse,touchscreen, etc. The GUI technique may also be carried out on aninstrument, e.g., an assay instrument for performing biological assayssuch as immunological or nucleic acid assays. In some embodiments, theinstrument performs electrochemiluminescence assays. In someembodiments, the instrument is an automated assays system, for example,comprising, (a) a single robotic controlled 8-channel pipettor, (b) asingle robotic controlled assay plate gripper arm, (c) a single96-channel channel assay plate washer, (d) a single plate reader, (e)one or more plate shakers with a total capacity of at least 5 plateshaking locations, and (f) a processor adapted to execute an assayprocess for analyzing a plurality of samples in 96-well plates. Othercomputing devices, machines, systems and instruments include wearabledevices, automotive computing systems, individual instruments includingassay-related instruments such as plate washers, plate readers, plateshakers, incubators, work-flow aid instruments such as loading carts(e.g., as described in International Patent Appl. Pub. Nos. WO2018/017156 and WO 2017/015636, which are incorporated by referenceherein in their entirety), medical instruments and machines such as MRIand CT machines, ultrasound systems, consumer products such as homeappliances, home systems including home management systems, airconditioning and heating systems, clothes washers and dryers, dishwashers, ovens, slow cookers and other cooking devices.

Various embodiments may be program, software, or computer instructionsembodied or stored in a computer or machine usable, readable orexecutable medium, which causes the computer or machine to perform thesteps of the method when executed on the computer, processor, and/ormachine. For instance, a program storage device readable by a machine,tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machineto perform various functionalities and methods described in the presentdisclosure may be provided.

The system and method of the present disclosure may be implemented andrun on a general-purpose computer or special-purpose computer system (ordevice). The computer system may be any type of known or will be knownsystems and may include a hardware processor, memory device, a storagedevice, input/output devices, internal buses, and/or a communicationsinterface for communicating with other computer systems in conjunctionwith communication hardware and software, etc. The GUI techniques of thepresent disclosure may also be implemented on a mobile device or thelike. Implementing the various computer instructions, softwareprotocols, and modules as described herein on a general purpose computermay serve to transform a general purpose computer into a special-purposecomputer system configured to carry out the specific methods, tasks,operations, and actions described herein.

FIG. 19 illustrates an example computer system 100 that may implementthe system and/or method of the present disclosure. One or more centralprocessing units (e.g., CPUs) 2 may include one or more arithmetic/logicunit (ALU), fast cache memory and registers and/or register file.Registers are small storage devices; register file may be a set ofmultiple registers. Caches are fast storage memory devices, for example,comprising static random access (SRAM) chips. Caches serve as temporarystaging area to hold data that the CPU 2 uses. Shown is a simplifiedhardware configuration. CPU 2 may include other combination circuits andstorage devices.

One or more central processing units (CPUs) 2 execute instructionsstored in memory 4, for example, transferred to registers in the CPU 2.Buses 6, for example, are electrical wires that carry bits of databetween the components. Memory 4 may include an array of dynamic randomaccess memory (DRAM) chips, and store program and data that CPU 2 usesin execution. The system components may also include input/output (I/O)controllers and adapters connected to the CPU 2 and memory 4 via a bus,e.g., I/O bus and connect to I/O devices. For example, display/graphicadapter connects 8 a monitor 28 or another display device/terminal; diskcontroller 10 connects hard disks 24, for example, for permanentstorage; serial controller 12 such as universal serial bus (USB)controller may connect input devices such as keyboard 22 and mouse 20,output devices such as printers 26; network adapter 14 connects thesystem to another network, for example, to other machines. The systemmay also include expansion slots to accommodate other devices to connectto the system. For example, a hard disk 24 may store the program ofinstructions and data that implement the above described methods andsystems, which may be loaded into the memory 4, then into the CPU'sstorage (e.g., caches and registers) for execution by the CPU (e.g., ALUand/or other combination circuit or logic). In another aspect, all orsome of the program of instructions and data implementing the abovedescribed methods and systems may be accessed, and or executed over thenetwork 18 at another computer system or device. FIG. 19 is only oneexample of a computer system. The computer system that may implement themethodologies or system of the present disclosure is not limited to theconfiguration shown in FIG. 19. Rather, another computer system mayimplement the methodologies of the present disclosure, for example,including but not limited to special processors such as fieldprogrammable gate array (FPGA) and accelerators.

In one embodiment, the present invention may be embodied as a computerprogram product that may include a computer readable storage medium (ormedia) and/or a computer readable storage device. Such computer readablestorage medium or device may store computer readable programinstructions for causing a processor to carry out one or moremethodologies described here. In one embodiment, the computer readablestorage medium or device includes a tangible device that can retain andstore instructions for use by an instruction execution device. Examplesof the computer readable storage medium or device may include, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination thereof, forexample, such as a computer diskette, a hard disk, a random accessmemory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmableread-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static random access memory(SRAM), a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digitalversatile disk (DVD), a memory stick, but not limited to only thoseexamples. The computer readable medium can comprise both computerreadable storage media (as described above) or computer readabletransmission media, which can include, for example, coaxial cables,copper wire, and fiber optics. Computer readable transmission media mayalso take the form of acoustic or light waves, such as those generatedduring radio frequency, infrared, wireless, or other media includingelectric, magnetic, or electromagnetic waves.

The terms “computer system” as may be used in the present applicationmay include a variety of combinations of fixed and/or portable computerhardware, software, peripherals, mobile, and storage devices. Thecomputer system may include a plurality of individual components thatare networked or otherwise linked to perform collaboratively or mayinclude one or more stand-alone components. The hardware and softwarecomponents of the computer system of the present application may includeand may be included within fixed and portable devices such as desktop,laptop, and/or server. A module may be a component of a device,software, program, or system that implements some “functionality,” whichcan be embodied as software, hardware, firmware, electronic circuitry,or etc.

The storage device 1120, of which memory 4 and memory device 1802represent examples, may be implemented as one or more computer readablestorage media as described herein and may be employed to store variousdata and information with respect to the computer system 100.

In an embodiment, the storage device 1120 may store registrationinformation such as a user identifier and a user account number.Registration information may be stored via data storage commands issuedby the data storage manager 1064. In an embodiment, the registrationinformation is stored in the storage device 1120. The registrationinformation may be stored as one or more data structures. These datastructures can include linked lists, b-trees, binary trees, heaps,stacks, queues, hash tables, red-black trees, binomial heaps, Fibonacciheaps, etc. In one example, the registration information may be storedin a registration table. The registration information includes at leasta user identifier associated with the user and an account number. Sincemultiple users may be assigned to the same account number, the systemmay track this using a shared account flag, such as a semaphore, bit, orthe like. When multiple users are assigned to the same account numberthe shared account flag may be set to a first specific value. Otherwise,the shared account flag may be set to a different specific value. Usinga shared account flag is one way of tracking a shared account and thisdisclosure is not limited to this example. Other methods may be used.The shared account flag may be a column of the registration table. Foreach user identifier having the same account number, the shared accountflag is set to the specific value and associated with the useridentifier.

In other aspects, multiple account numbers may be linked together. Inembodiments, the user manager 1056 may issue commands for managing useraccount numbers. In an embodiment in accordance therewith, the multipleaccount numbers may represent a team such as a research, project,corporate, university, or experiment team. The system may track themultiple account numbers and team using a multiple account flag. Whendifferent account numbers are linked, the multiple account flag may beset to a first specific value otherwise, the multiple account flag maybe set to a different specific value. Using a multiple account flag isone way of tracking the linking of the different account numbers andthis disclosure is not limited to this example. Other methods may beused. In one embodiment, the multiple account flag may be a column ofthe registration table. For each linked account number, the multipleaccount flag is set to the specific value and associated with theaccount numbers.

In other embodiments, the storage device 1120 may also store loginhistorical data. The login historical data may be received via the inputmanager 1052, organized via the user manager 1056, and stored via thedata storage manager 1064. The login historical data may include theuser identifier/account number and time/date information for each time auser (or different users) logs into the system. The login historicaldata may be maintained in the storage device 1120 for a predetermined orindeterminate period of time. The predetermined period of time may bebased on a specific application being executed or to be executed.

In other embodiments, the storage device 1120 may also store userselection history. The user selection history may be received via inputmanager 1052, organized via user manager 1056, and stored via datastorage manager 1064. The user selection history may include a selectedmenu item, the user identifier/user account associated with theselection and time/date of selection. The user selection history mayalso be stored in the storage device 1120 for a predetermined orindeterminate period of time. The predetermined period of time may beselected according to the MUI module from which the user selection wasinitially made. The predetermined period of time for stored userselection history and the login historical data may be the same.

In other embodiments, the storage device 1120 may include exclusioninformation. The exclusion information may include menu items and/orchoices that are to be excluded from display in hierarchical menu levelson the MUI for one or more users, devices or interfaces. The exclusioninformation may be managed by commands issued via the exclusion manager1058 and stored by commands issued via the data storage manager 1064.

The commands that are issued or provided by the menu manager 1054 of themethodical user interface control system 1102 allow for a user to movebi-directionally between hierarchical menu levels (backward andforward), backward being to a higher hierarchical menu level and forwardbeing to a lower hierarchical menu level including being able to viewpast or prior menu items that have been selected or not selected. Forexample, various menu levels and/or choices from one or more levels of agiven path of hierarchal menus, can be viewed concurrently on the MUI.

In an embodiment, a display command may be provided by the displaymanager 1050 for a specific set of hierarchical menu level(s) to bedisplayed on a specific portion of the MUI. The display command isconfigured to cause display of one or more menus in one or more portionsof the MUI. The specific hierarchical menu level may include one or moremenu items (or choices). The display command may include the one or moremenu items, a specific display order, a display orientation, displaysize (and format) and manner in which the choices are displayed, such asscrolling method, although other manners in which to arrange and/ordisplay the choices are contemplated as well. In an embodiment, thescrolling method may define the display orientation and thus, thedisplay command does not necessarily include a separate displayorientation and scrolling method.

In an embodiment, each menu item in a specific hierarchical menu levelmay be displayed in the same size. In other embodiments, one or morespecific menu items may be displayed larger or smaller than other menuitems.

The display command may specify the scrolling method. For example, thedisplay command may specify that the menu items are to be displayed in agraphical wheel that rotates the items in a direction, for example,horizontal or vertical (e.g., left and right or up and down) or anotherdirection. In another embodiment, the display command may specify thatthe menu items are to be displayed as a graphical slider that slides theitems in a direction, for example, horizontal or vertical (e.g., leftand right, up and down) or another direction.

Different display commands may specify different scrolling methods ororientations, or different commands can employ the same or similarscrolling methods or orientations. In an embodiment, the orientations inthe different commands (such as the first command and the secondcommand) may specify that the orientations are substantially orthogonalto each other. In other embodiments, orientations can be horizontal,substantially horizontal, vertical, substantially vertical, concentric,and substantially concentric vis-à-vis one another. As used herein,substantially may be + or −5°. In other aspects, substantially may be +or −10°. In other aspect, substantially may be + or −15°. In otheraspects, substantially may be determined by percentage, such as 80% or90%.

FIGS. 2A-2O show examples of user interface displays in differentembodiments, details of which are further described below.

FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of interactivelydisplaying interactive items on a user interface display forcomputer-user interaction in another aspect, for example, details of themethod wherein a vertical and horizontal switching of menu levels maytake place. The method may be performed automatically by at least onehardware processor. At operation 302, a list of menu items may bedisplayed on a first portion of the user interface display. The list ofmenu items is displayed in a first visual orientation on the firstportion. For instance, the first visual orientation may be a verticalorientation. The list of menu items may include one or more menu itemsfrom a first menu and may be displayed in response to a first displaycommand provided by the display manager 1050.

FIG. 2A shows an example of a user interface display in one embodiment.As shown, the menu items 202 are displayed in one orientation, forexample, vertically, in a first portion 204 of the display 206. The menuitems are interactive, for example, in that the items are selectable,and a selection (e.g., a user selecting a menu item by clicking on auser interface menu item) causes a computer to execute programmedfunctions.

As illustrated in FIG. 2A, the menu items 202 of a first menu areprovided in a first portion 204 of the interface in a wheel orientedvertically, i.e., a first orientation. The MUI includes a display 206.The first portion 204 may display the menu items 202 in response to afirst display command for a first menu of user-selectable choices to bedisplayed on the first portion 204 of the MUI. As discussed above, thefirst display command may be provided by the display manager 1050.

The first display command includes the menu items for the first menu(which, in one embodiment, are stored in the storage device 1120, thescrolling method/orientation and size (and format). For example, theorientation for the menu items for the first menu (to be displayed inthe first portion) may be vertical. The first display command may alsoinclude a location of display, e.g., location of the first portion. Thefirst portion may be in a central location on the MUI. Each menu itemmay be selectable by the user.

In an embodiment, the first portion may include a decision-making zone.The decision-making zone may be located at a central location within thefirst portion. The decision-making zone may be a location in the firstor active portion wherein a prominent or highlighted menu item isdisplayed for immediate selection. For example, in FIG. 2A, MENU ITEM 4is shown in a decision-making zone and is shown in a larger size fontthan the remaining menu items so as to be a prominent or highlightedmenu item displayed for immediate selection. The first display commandfor causing provision of the first menu may specify that menu itemsdisplayed within the decision-making zone be emphasized or highlighted,such as being displayed in a larger size font than other menu items notin the decision-making zone. In other aspects, the menu item(s)displayed within the decision-making zone may be bolded, italicized, orhighlighted using a different color than the background, or underlined.

In other embodiments, the first display command may specify that menuitems displayed outside the decision-making zone be deemphasized, suchas making the menu items smaller, faded with respect to the other menuitems in the decision-making zone.

The first display command is executed by the hardware processor andcauses the first menu to be displayed on the first portion of the MUI.The MUI allows the user to select one or more menu items from thedisplayed menu items on the first portion 204 and to drill down throughhierarchical menu level(s) of menu items based on selecting a menu itemfrom a prior and/or subsequent hierarchical menu level(s) of menu items.When a menu item(s) is selected from the first menu displayed on thefirst portion 204 of the MUI, the input manager 1052 receives andinterprets the selection.

As shown in FIG. 2A, all first menu items 202 displayed in the firstportion 204 are selectable. MENU ITEM 4 is shown as a prominent menuitem and is highlighted as being immediately selectable. As used herein,“immediately selectable” means that a single action, such as clicking bya user, causes the selection of the menu item. MENU ITEM 4 is selectableand highlighted as a prominent menu while the other MENU ITEMS (1, 2, 3,5, and N) are unhighlighted as receded menu items. The receded menuitems are non-immediately selectable, meaning that they require morethan one user action for selection. Clicking on the highlightedimmediately selectable menu item by the user causes it to be selected.The other menu items may be highlighted for immediate selection throughrotation of the wheel or clicking on them. Receipt of a signal, by theinput manager 1052, indicative of clicking on the immediately selectablemenu item causes the input manager 1052 executing on the processor 1110to detect the selection of the prominent immediately selectable menuitem. Responsive to the selection, the input manager 1052 issues acommand to the menu manager 1054 indicative of the selection. The menumanager 1054 then determines the new menu arrangement to be displayedaccording to the selection and provides a relocation command to thedisplay manager 1050 to cause a change in the MUI.

Referring back to FIG. 3, at operation 304, responsive to detecting aselection of a menu item from the list of menu items, the list of menuitems is relocated to a second portion of the user interface display.The list of menu items is displayed in a second visual orientation onthe second portion, the second visual orientation being substantiallyorthogonal (e.g., perpendicular) to the first visual orientation. Forinstance, the second visual orientation may be a horizontal orientation.

A relocation command causes the first menu of menu choices 202 to berelocated from the first portion 204 to the second portion 208 of theMUI display 206. FIG. 2B illustrates the results of the relocationcommand. The relocation command may include the menu choices of thefirst menu to be displayed in the second portion 208, the size andorientation of display, the necessary visual components for display, anindication as to which menu item was selected to cause relocation, andany other information discussed herein with respect to the displaycommand. The relocated first menu, displayed now in the historical orsecond portion 208 as a past menu, may include one or more or all of themenu items 202 and choices previously made available to the user. Themenu item 202 selected by the user to cause the relocation becomes apast-selected menu item while the unselected menu items from menu items202 become past-unselected menu items. The past-unselected menu itemsare representative of previously navigated hierarchical menu levels.After relocation of the menu items 202 of the first menu, the displaymanager 1050 causes the MUI to display, in the active or first portion204, submenu items 210 of the second menu responsive to the first menuselection as a new current or subsequent level of menu choices for theuser to interact with. As illustrated in FIG. 2B, the subsequent orsecond level of menu choices includes second submenu items 210 displayedin the active or first portion 204 of the MUI display 206.

In a method in accordance with an embodiment, upon receiving a signalfrom the input manager 1052 indicating that a menu item 202 has beenselected from the first portion 204, the relocation command is issued.For example, the menu manager 1054 provides the relocation command tothe display manager 1050. The relocation command instructs the displaymanager 1050 to move the first menu from the first portion 204 of theMUI display 206 to the second portion 208 of the MUI display 206 in asecond menu. The second portion 208 is at a different location on theMUI display 206 than the first portion 204. Since a menu item wasselected from the first menu of menu items 202, the relocated first menuof menu items 202, as displayed in the second portion 208, will now haveboth a past-selected menu item(s) and past-unselected menu item(s)(e.g., one or more menu items that the user could have selected, but didnot). The relocation command may include the first menu items, scrollmethod and/or orientation, display size (and format) and the location ofthe second portion.

In an embodiment, the second portion 208 is located farther from acentral location of the MUI display 206 than the first portion 204.

In an embodiment, the orientation of displaying the menu items 202 inthe first menu in the second portion 208 is different from theorientation of the display of the submenu items 210 in the second menuin the first portion 204. For example, orientation of the menu items 202in the second portion 208 may be substantially orthogonal to theorientation of the submenu items 210 in the first portion 204. Therelocation command may specify that the orientation of the menu items202 is horizontal (whereas the first display command specified that theorientation of the menu items 202 was vertical). In other embodiments,the orientation may be reversed, where menu items 210 in the firstportion 204 are horizontal and the menu items 202 in the second portion208 are vertical. In embodiments, the first portion 204 is located in acentral lower portion of the MUI display 206 and the second portion 208is located in an upper portion of the MUI display 206.

The relocation command may also specify different sizes for menu items.For example, the selected menu item(s) from the first menu (whichtriggered the relocation) may be specified to be displayed in anemphasized manner, such as being displayed in a larger font size thanunselected menu items. In other aspects, the selected menu item(s) maybe bolded, italicized, or highlighted using a different color than thebackground, or underlined. In another aspect, the relocation command mayalso specify a relative position of the menu items 202 within the secondportion 208. For example, a selected menu item(s) may be positioned in acentral location within the second portion relative to other menu items(non-selected menu items).

In other aspects, non-selected menu items from the hierarchical menulevel may be displayed in a deemphasized manner. For example, therelocation command may specify the non-selected menu items to be asmaller font size or faded relative to the selected menu items. In otheraspects, the relocation command may specify the non-selected menu itemsto be displayed further from the central portion of the second portionthan a selected menu item(s) for the same hierarchical menu level.

The first portion and the second portion may be displayed on the userinterface display such that they are non-overlapping. The menu itemsrelocated to the second portion are selectable from that position orlocation, and the selected menu item may be graphically highlighted, forinstance, to provide a visual indication of which item from the list hasbeen selected. The selected menu item may also be centered with othermenu items to the left and/or right of the selected menu item. Thesubmenu items that are displayed where the relocated menu items weredisplayed (before the relocation) are also selectable items. FIG. 2Bshows an example of the user interface display in one embodiment with arelocated list of menu items. As shown, the menu items 202 are relocatedto a second portion 208 of the display 206, for instance, above thefirst portion 204, and displayed horizontally. As described in moredetail below, the second portion of the display may include many levelsof menu items, for example, levels of past decisions and also theoptions in those levels that were not chosen. Thus, the number of levelsof past decisions may be, e.g., 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12,13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, or more, e.g., 1-2, 1-3, 1-4, 1-5, 1-6,1-7, 1-8, 1-9, 1-10, 1-11, 1-12, 1-13, 1-14, 1-15, 1-16, 1-17, 1-18,1-19, 1-20, and nested ranges therein, e.g., 2-20, 2-19, 2-18, 3-20,3-19, 3-18, etc. The second portion, for instance, visualizes arepresentation of a path of past decisions taken and other decisions(other paths) not taken. In an embodiment, the past decisions taken(menu item chosen) may be aligned, e.g., vertically, e.g., in thecenter.

The second portion 208 may be caused to display the first menu items 202in response to a relocation command for a first menu of user-selectablechoices to be displayed on the second portion 208 of the MUI display206. As discussed above, the relocation command may be provided by themenu manager 1054 to the display manager 1050. The first menu ofuser-selectable choices may include both past-selected andpast-unselected menu items. The first menu can include one or more ofthe first menu items 202 that are selectable by the user. The menu items202 may be immediately selectable or non-immediately selectable.

The second portion 208 may also include one or more decision-makingzones. The relocation command may also specify that menu items displayedwithin the decision-making zone be emphasized or highlighted. In otheraspects, the menu item(s) displayed within the decision-making zone maybe bolded, italicized, or highlighted using a different color than thebackground, or underlined. In other embodiments, the relocation commandmay specify the same. In other embodiments, the relocation command mayspecify that menu items displayed outside the decision-making zone bedeemphasized or dehighlighted.

The first portion 204 and the second portion 208 are displayed on theMUI display 206 so that they are both viewable, for example, viewableconcurrently. The MUI display 206 may be presented via one or morephysical display screens. The second portion 208 may contain one or moremenus, each menu including both past-selected and past-unselected menuitems from previously navigated hierarchical menus. In therepresentation shown in FIG. 2C, the second portion 208 (historicalportion) includes menu items 202 and submenu items 210, each of whichwere included in the first portion 204 in a previous MUI representation.The menu items 202 and sub-menu items 210 which were past-selected,i.e., those menu items that led to the sub-submenu items 212 beingdisplayed in the first portion, may be highlighted or emphasized toindicate that they were previously selected. As shown in FIG. 2C, MENUITEM 4 and SUBMENU ITEM 3 are highlighted to indicate that they werepreviously selected.

The past-unselected menu and submenu items are displayed as selectableoptions. The past-selected menu item (or choice) also may be displayedas a selectable option, where both are displayed on the second portion208 (e.g., a historical portion, which can include one or more menuitems previously made available to a user). The historical portioncontrasts with an active portion, which can include current,user-selectable choices (e.g., located on the first portion of thedisplay) for the current hierarchal menu level. The historical portioncan allow users to make selections as well, e.g., by making a selectionamong previously selected hierarchal levels and/or menus. In thismanner, the historical second portion 208 may represent a “trail ofbreadcrumbs” showing to a user the ordered path of selections made toarrive at the current menu as displayed in the active first portion 204.Further details on selections made in the second portion 208 areprovided below.

In some embodiments, the first portion 204 may be adapted to take up alarger portion of the display area of the MUI than the second portion208. The second portion 208 may be displayed across a smaller area thanthe first portion 204. The first portion 204 and second portion 208 maybe adapted for display in a manner that provides contrast against abackground on which they are displayed. For example, the first portion204 and second portion 208 may be displayed in bright pixels against adark background or dark pixels against a bright background.

In other embodiments, a command (such as, for example, a relocationcommand) may be provided by the menu manager 1054 to move or relocate amenu from a portion of the MUI display 206 to another portion of the MUIdisplay 206. In one embodiment, the moving or relocating of a menuand/or menu item(s) can include providing a command to move a menu fromone portion of the display to another. In another embodiment, the movingor relocating of a menu can include issuing multiple commands, forexample, one command to remove the menu from the first portion 204 ofthe display and another command to display the menu (either in the sameformat and/or orientation or in a different format and/or orientation)on a second portion 208 of the display. This relocation can occur, forexample, in response to a user's selection from a menu (e.g., a firstmenu).

Referring back to FIG. 3, at operation 306, on the first portion of theuser interface display, where the list of menu items was previouslydisplayed before being relocated to the second portion, a first list ofsubmenu items associated with the selected menu item is displayed in thefirst visual orientation. Shown in FIG. 2B, a first list of submenuitems 210 is displayed in the first portion 204, for instance,vertically.

Referring back to FIG. 3, at operation 308, responsive to detecting aselection of a submenu item from the first list of submenu items, thefirst list of submenu items is relocated to the second portion, whereinthe first list of submenu items is displayed in the second visualorientation and stacked with the list of menu items displayed on thesecond portion. At operation 310, on the first portion of the userinterface display, a second list of submenu items associated with theselected submenu item is displayed in the first visual orientation, forexample, vertically. FIG. 2C shows an example of the user interfacedisplay in one embodiment with a second list of submenu items. As shown,the first list of submenu items 210 is relocated to the second portion208, stacked for instance below the relocated list of menu items 202,for example, stacked horizontally. The second list of submenu items 212,i.e., sub-submenu items associated with the selected submenu item, isdisplayed in the first portion 204. Depending on the depth of the menusor submenus navigated, the horizontal menu structure in the secondportion 208 may accumulate a number of menu levels that exceed thenumber that can be displayed together on the display portion at thesecond portion 208 (e.g., the number of levels stacked exceed the screenportion allocated for the horizontal menu structure of the secondportion 208). In one embodiment, the horizontal menu structure of thesecond portion 208 may shown number of menu levels, e.g., the last 3submenus, allowing for scroll capability. For example, scrolling upallows the user to see the other menu items. The number n may be anynumber, not limited to 3, e.g., 2, 3, 4, 5, etc. In another embodiment,the top m (e.g., 2) menus may be displayed along with the bottom 1sub-menu to provide top-level context to the last decision. The number mmay be any number, not limited to 3, e.g., 2, 3, 4, 5, etc. Scrollcapability allows for displaying other menu items, e.g., user can scrollto see other menu items. The user may also expand the entire multi-levelof menus and submenus.

As shown in FIG. 2C, a subsequent level of menu choices, e.g.,sub-submenu items 212, may be at least one hierarchical menu level (froma third menu) or more than one hierarchical menu level below (from afourth, fifth, sixth, etc., menu) the first menu of menu items 202. Inthe example of FIG. 2C, sub-submenu items 212 represent a third menuthat is two hierarchical levels below the first menu of menu items 202.

The process of relocating, for example, menu items from one portion toanother portion of the user interface display as menu items are selectedmay continue up or down the levels of the menu items. For instance, theprocessing at operations 308 and 310 in FIG. 3 may repeat for additionallevels of submenus. In another aspect, selecting menu items from therelocated list of menu items may function as a “back” button, without auser having to explicitly click on a back button to return to theprevious list of menu items. Yet in another aspect, if a number ofrelocated lists of menu/submenu items that are stacked reach apredefined number or threshold, for example, such that stacked list inthat the area of the second portion becomes too large and encroachesinto the area of the first portion, the stacks themselves may bedisplayed as a rotating wheel or slider, for instance, in the firstvisual orientation. Thus, for example, menu items in each of the stackedlist may be displayed in the second visual orientation (items areslidable in that direction, e.g., horizontally), while each list in thestacked lists is slidable in the direction of the first visualorientation (e.g., vertically). In this way, a vertical bread crumb maybe provided on the horizontal sliders and contextualized by the otheroptions to the left and/or right of center (a selected item). Any layermay be adjusted in real time while not having to go back. Suchdisplaying of the vertical and horizontal sliders allows for proceedingthrough a tree of options and picking desired leaf options. In anotheraspect, the number of menu and/or submenu items can be collapsible andexpandable. For instance, the bottom or last ‘n’ levels (e.g., 3 levels)which are the most recent may be displayed with the rest of the levelscollapsed. Those collapsed levels are made expandable, for example, byuser input. As another example, the top ‘m’ levels (e.g., 2 levels) andthe bottom level (e.g., ‘1’ level) may be displayed, representing thetop-level context with the most recent option or decision the user isworking on (i.e., bottom level).

While FIGS. 2A-2C show the first visual orientation as vertical and thesecond visual orientation as horizontal, the orientations may beswitched. For instance, the first visual orientation may be horizontaland the second visual orientation may be vertical. In another aspect,the first visual orientation and the second visual orientation may be ofany other positional display orientations.

As described above, the menu items and associated submenu items may bedisplayed as a slider graphical element, a rotating wheel graphicalelement, or another graphical user interface element. For example,concentric wheel elements, as described below with respect to FIGS.2H-2J may be employed.

In embodiments, an ordering or arrangement of menu items within theirmenu levels may be determined according to attributes of the menu items.The manner in which the menu items are displayed may be based onattributes selected from whether a menu item is a previously selected orpreviously unselected item, whether a menu item is selectable orunselectable, whether a menu item includes one or more characters typedby a user, whether a menu item is part of an advanced context menu(described in greater detail below), and/or whether a menu item has aposition in a list more central relative to other items in the list.

In embodiments, the way menu items are adapted to be displayed, i.e.,the ordering, arrangement, coloring, and presentation of menu items, maybe determined according to several different factors. For example, themenu manager 1054 and display manager 1050, in conjunction, may beconfigured to emphasize menu items that are selected or are pastselected, are currently available to the user (i.e., selectable), and/orare positioned in a decision making zone of a first portion 204 or asecond portion 208. The menu manager 1054 and display manager 1050 mayfurther be configured to deemphasize menu items that are not selected orare past-unselected, that are currently unavailable to the user, and/orthat are positioned away from the decision making zone. In someembodiments, immediately selectable menu items may be emphasized whilenon-immediately selectable items may be deemphasized. In someembodiments, emphasizing or deemphasizing a menu item may includehighlighting or dehighlighting the menu item, as discussed herein.Highlighting or emphasizing may include, for example, bolding,increasing in font size, changing fonts, underlining, changingbrightness or contrast, or adjusting position on the display relative toother items. Dehighlighting or deemphasizing may include decreasing infont size, changing fonts, fading, changing brightness or contrast, oradjusting position on the display relative to other items.

The MUI allows the user to jump to a different path of menu items (e.g.,by selecting one or more additional menu items at the same, higher, orlower hierarchical level of a menu) by allowing the user to select apast-unselected menu item from a previously navigated menu leveldisplayed on the second portion 208 of the MUI display 206 and a newlydisplayed menu item(s) on the first menu displayed a current menu beingdisplayed on the first portion. As discussed above and with respect toFIG. 2C, previously navigated menu items (including submenu items,sub-submenu items, etc.) may be relocated to the second portion 208after a menu item is selected.

The previously selected menu items in the second portion 208 may behighlighted or emphasized to visually indicate the menuing path that hasbeen taken to arrive at the menu or submenu currently displayed in thefirst portion 204. Previously unselected menu items from the secondportion may be selected to permit the user to jump to that branch of amenu. In the example of FIG. 2C, a user has previously selected MENUITEM 4 and SUBMENU ITEM 3. Selection of a new and previously unselectedsubmenu item 210 from the second portion 208 would cause the menumanager 1054 to issue commands for a new list of sub-submenu items 212associated with the newly selected submenu item 210 to be displayed asthe current menu being displayed in the first portion 204. Selection ofa new and previously unselected menu item from the menu items 202 wouldcause the menu manager 1054 to issue commands to cause the display of anew list of submenu items associated with the newly selected menu item202 as the current menu being displayed in the first portion 204. Inthis way, a user may actively jump between various portions of a menuingtree without having to navigate back through the previous decisions.

When a previously unselected menu item (or submenu item, or sub-submenuitem, etc.) is selected, a save command may be issued to store a stateof the current menu in the first portion before the subsequent menu inthe first portion is displayed. In embodiments, as disclosed in greaterdetail below, navigating through the menu items to a final branch in themenuing tree at the level of an executable menu allows a user to makeone or more parameter selections. Should a user navigate away from anexecution level menu, the parameters that were currently selected at thetime the user navigated away may be stored via a save command issued bythe menu manager 1054 to the data storage manager 1064. Accordingly, ifa user should later wish to return to the execution level menu, the lastselected parameters will be displayer.

Previously unselected menu items may be selectable within the past menuof previously navigated menu items. In embodiments, previouslyunselected menu items may be immediately selectable, requiring only aclick for selection, or may be non-immediately selectable, requiringanother step to highlight the menu item prior to selection. Inembodiments, the previously selected menu items may be unselectable, asthe user has already selected them. In further embodiments, only thepreviously selected menu item from the lowest hierarchical level in thepast menu (i.e., the menu immediately previous to the current firstmenu) is unselectable, while the previously selected menu items fromhigher hierarchical levels remain selectable. In the example provided byFIG. 2C, SUBMENU ITEM 3 may be unselectable while MENU ITEM 4 may beselectable.

In embodiments, the various menus are displayed on a background. In anembodiment, the menus are superimposed over the background. Thebackground may consist of one or more colors. In an embodiment, at leasta preset percentage of the background pixels may be monochromatic. Forexample, at least a preset percentage of the background pixels may beblack. For instance, 75% of the background may be monochromic (e.g.,black, white, gray, etc.). The specific percentage has been described byway of example and other percentages may be used.

In embodiments, display commands and relocation commands may specify thebackground, including the preset percentage and color, e.g., black,white, gray, etc. In certain embodiments, the background may alsoinclude areas of the menus other than text (e.g., menu items). In anembodiment, the text of the menus is displayed in a color to contrast oremphasis the text with the background. For example, when a blackbackground is used, white or yellow may be used for the color of thetext, although other colors may be used as well. In other embodiments,the backgrounds and/or text may be comprised of more than one color.

In some embodiments, an initial or first menu, i.e., the startingcurrent menu, may be a default menu that is displayed upon a login of aregistered user. In an embodiment, a default menu may be customized fora specific user identifier. In other aspects, the default menu may bespecific to a MUI module. For example, the default menu may include asmenu items a list of assays, tests, runs, clinical trials, etc. Inembodiments in accordance herewith, the default menu is determinedaccording to one or more of the following: a MUI module being run, alocation of a device running the MUI module, a user identifier, and anapplication of the menu. For example, a device located at a user'sdesktop may run a MUI module that defaults to a default menu suitablefor selecting options for experimental design or experimental analysis.In another example, a device located at a clinical instrument may run aMUI module to provide a default menu suitable for selecting options torun an experiment and collect data. In embodiments, the default menu maybe a first menu, second menu, third menu, and/or any other menu from alevel in a hierarchical menu tree.

In an embodiment, any menu provided in any portion of the MUI displaymay include search functions. The search function enables a user toenter keywords or other inputs associated with menu items (options). Auser input is received via the input manager 1052 and transferred to themenu manager 1054 for searching purposes. The searching allows for thefunctions (menu items) to be filtered using the entered keywords orother inputs, which shortens a time needed to find a desired menu item.An interface for the search function may be positioned in a centrallocation of respective portions of the MUI display 206, or in thealternative, other portions of the MUI display 206. In furtherembodiments, no visual interface is provided for the search function. Insuch an embodiment, a user may access the search function merely bytyping.

In an embodiment, any menu item(s) that match or partially match thekeyword(s) may be displayed to emphasize the menu item(s). For example,the menu item(s) may be displayed in a larger size than other menu itemsthat do not match or partially match. In other embodiments, the menuitem(s) may be bolded, italicized, or highlighted using a differentcolor than the background, or underlined. In other embodiments, menuitem(s) not matching or partially matching the keyword(s) may bedeemphasized, such as the menu item(s) being smaller or fading the textwith respect to the text of menu item(s) that match or partial match. Inembodiments hereof, sliders or wheels may be automatically advancedand/or rotated to display menu items matching search terms.

In an embodiment, a first menu selection may operate as a filter on asecond menu. In a hierarchical tree, each of several items in a firstmenu may lead to the same second menu. However, the first menu selectionthat is made determines the menu items shown when the second menu isdisplayed. In a simple example, the first menu may include menu itemspertaining to team roles while a second menu may include a menupertaining to team responsibilities. The selection of a specific teamrole at the first menu may filter the second menu to only show teamresponsibilities that correspond to the selected role. In someembodiments, such filtering is performed by making specific items of thesecond menu unselectable.

In an embodiment, any selection made in any menu operates as a filter onthe menu items displayed in any other menu. For example, in anembodiment, a series of items in the first menu may be a series ofcategory filters that each lead to a second menu. Each second menu leadsto a series of submenus and, eventually, one or more execution menus,permitting the user to select parameters for the selected categoryfilter. After selecting category filters in one or more of the categoryfilter submenus, a user may then select another first menu item thatprovides a list of second menu items filtered according to the categoryfilters that have previously been selected.

In an embodiment, one or more menus or menu levels may be presented asexceptions to the hierarchical menu tree standard discussed herein. Forexample, a menu level may include a visual display and/or a videodisplay rather than a text based visual component. Exceptions may beimplemented, for example, in situations where information may better beconveyed through alternate means. For example, as discussed above, anexecution level menu may include a walkthrough, which may be bestpresented via a video or series of images. In another example, anexecution level menu may be presented for data analysis, and may provideany combination of graphs, charts, tables, etc. to assist in dataanalysis.

In an embodiment, an advanced context menu may be provided via one ormore commands issued by the menu manager 1054. FIG. 2P illustrates anexample of a methodical user interface including an advanced contextmenu 270. The advanced context menu 270 contrasts with the first portionand the second portion, which together provide a “direct workflow mode.”The advanced context menu 270 may be accessed via an advanced contextmenu selector 290, which may, in embodiments, be present on some or allscreens of a methodical user interface. The advanced context menu 270provides additional advanced menu items 271 beyond the items appearingin the current menu in the active first portion 204 or one or more pastmenus appearing in the historical second portion 208. The advancedcontext menu 270 may be accessed by clicking or hovering over theadvanced context menu selector 290 or otherwise indicating a desire toaccess the advanced context menu 270. The advanced context menu 270includes a selection of advanced menu items 271.

The selection of advanced menu items 271 may include items displayed inthe current menu in the first (active) portion 204 and items displayedin the previous menus in the second (historical) portion 208. Inaccordance with an embodiment hereof, advanced menu item(s) 271 of theadvanced context menu 270 may be emphasized. For example, the advancedmenu item(s) 271 may be displayed in a larger font size. In otherembodiments, the menu item(s) may be bolded, italicized, or highlightedusing a different color than the background, or underlined.

Other items included in the selection of items in the advanced contextmenu 270 may be items related to but not currently included in one ofthe displayed menus. That is, the selection of items in the advancedcontext menu 270 is driven by the current context of the UI display. Forexample, five menu items of a first menu may be displayed as the currentmenu in the active portion. Three additional menu items related to thefive menu items of the first menu may be displayed in the advancedcontext menu 270. The three additional menu items may be items of thefirst menu that were excluded or limited (as discussed further below)from the current menu display for various reasons.

The advanced context menu 270 offers the user a greater array ofaccessible menu items without causing clutter in the active portion orthe historical portion. In embodiments, some of the advanced menu items271 in the advanced context menu 270 may be items that are infrequentlyselected, for example, in less than 50, 45, 40, 35, 30, 25, 20, 15, 10,or 5% of use cases. Advanced menu items 271 of the advanced context menu270 may be selected according to patterns of user interaction with theMUI, as explained in greater detail below.

In embodiments, the advanced context menu 270 may include threeportions. A first top portion 272 of the advanced context menu 270 mayinclude advanced menu items 271 related to the currently active menu, asdescribed above. A second, middle portion 273 of the advanced contextmenu 270 may include advanced menu items 271 pertaining to MUI modulesavailable on the same workstation at which the advanced context menu 270is selected. These options may permit a user to swap modules based on adesired task. A third, bottom portion 274 of the advanced context 270menu may include global functions, such as login/logout functionality,user manuals and help, EULA information, and privacy policy information.The above described ordering is not limiting, and any of the describedadvanced menu items 271 may be presented in a different order.

In embodiments, when the advanced context menu 270 is selected, the MUIcauses other graphics, text, etc. to become faded and/or blurred. Theadvanced context menu 270 is displayed on a transparent background sothat the advanced context menu 270 and the rest of the background arethe same (e.g., black). Accordingly, the MUI provides a dialog boxadapted to be displayed on the foreground of the UI display to prompt auser for additional information or notify the user of an error, whereinthe background of the dialog box is further adapted to match thebackground of the first and second portions of the UI display, furtherwherein one or more of text, graphics, photos, and videos displayed inthe background of the first and second portions of the UI display areadapted to displayed out of focus when the dialog box is being displayedon the foreground of the UI display.

In an embodiment, certain menu items included in a hierarchical menutree, i.e., a first menu, second menu, third menu, etc., may be excludedor restricted from being displayed when that menu is being displayed.Exclusions and restrictions may be managed by the exclusion manager 1058in conjunction with the menu manager 1054. Displaying any menu from amenu tree includes displaying one or more menu items from that menu butdoes not necessarily require display of all items from that menu. Menuitems of a hierarchical menu level(s) may be excluded or restricted frombeing displayed based on an exclusion table. Exclusion tables maycorrespond to a user identifier, email address, username, team, and/oraccount number. In other embodiments, one or more entire menus from amenu tree may also be excluded based on an exclusion table. In certainembodiments, exclusion or restriction information may be stored in thestorage device 1120. The exclusion or restriction information may bestored as a data structure. Any data structure described herein may beemployed.

Exclusion or restriction information may be used to exclude menu itemsfrom the view of a particular user, group of users, type of user, etc.For example, administrative menu items or menu levels may be excludedfrom view of a user or operator that is an engineer or technician. Inanother example, design menu items or menu levels may be excluded fromview of a user or operator that is a lab assistant or lab technician.

User identifiers, account numbers and the menu item(s) and/or menus forexclusion may be input by an administrator. For example, an adminconsole module, discussed in greater detail below, may be used to manageand generate exclusion tables. The managing may be done when a userregisters with the system. In other embodiments, the exclusioninformation may be added after registration and periodically updated.

In embodiments, each time a user logs into the system, the hardwareprocessor maintains a record of the login (and also a log out) via thedata storage manager 1064. In an embodiment, this record, i.e., loginhistorical data, may be in a form of any data structures describedherein. In an embodiment, this login historical data may include theuser identifier and/or account number, a login time/date and a log outtime/date. In an embodiment, upon receipt of the login information, thedata storage manager 1064 adds the user identifier and/or account numberand the login time/date to the login historical data.

In certain embodiments, before issuing a command for displaying anymenu, the menu manager 1054 may check the exclusion table (for example,stored in the storage device 1120) to determine if any menu items in theinitial display menu (e.g., default menu) are listed to be excluded fromdisplay for the user (or account number). In an embodiment, the menumanager 1054 may match the user identifier and/or account number of theuser currently logged in with user identifiers and/or account numberslisted in the exclusion table. If there is a match, then the menu itemslisted in the exclusion table are to be excluded from being displayed inthe initial display menu. This exclusion may be carried out, through theissuance of a separate exclusion command and/or instruction, or in thealternative, the exclusion can occur by modifying any display commandsthat cause the available menu item(s) to be displayed. The menu manager1054 may remove the menu items included in the list from the menu itemsin the initial display menu (e.g., default menu) and issue the firstcommand without the removed menu items.

In certain embodiments, each time the input manager 1052 receives aselection of a menu item in the current menu, prior to issuing arelocation command, the menu manager 1054 may determine whether any menuitem on a hierarchical menu level lower than the hierarchical menu levelcurrently being displayed on by the MUI display 206, as the currentmenu, is listed to be excluded (or whether a lower hierarchical menu isto be excluded). The determination may use the login historical data andthe exclusion table. The login historical data may be used to confirmthat the same user (user identifier or account number) is still loggedin and match the same with user identifiers and account numbers in theexclusion table. In other embodiments, the menu manager 1054 may use auser identifier and account number received from the user manager 1056instead of the login historical data for the determination. In otherembodiments, a similar determination is made prior to issuing anyrelocation or display command.

In yet other embodiments, different exclusion tables may be useddepending on whether the menu items are to be displayed on the MUIdisplay 206 in the first portion 204 or the second portion 208. Inaccordance with this embodiment, the exclusion table may have additionalcolumns of information, one column for each portion (menu). A column forthe first portion lists menu items to be excluded when displayed on thefirst portion 204 of the MUI display 206, a column for the secondportion 208 lists menu items to be excluded when displayed on the secondportion of the MUI display 206, and columns for additional portions listadditional menu items to be excluded when displayed on any additionalportions of the MUI display 206.

As described above, an account number may be associated with multipleusers (user identifiers). Thus, when an account number is used as thebasis of exclusion, all of the users associated with the account numbermay have the menu items excluded from being displayed on the MUI display206.

In another embodiment, since certain account numbers may be linked, whenthe account number is used, any account number linked with the accountnumber may also have menu items excluded.

In other embodiments, instead of excluding menu items, the menu itemsmay be moved to a position of the respective menus to deemphasize themenu items with respect to other menu items. In accordance with thisembodiment, the exclusion table may be used by the menu manager 1054 toreorder or change positions of the menu items on a hierarchical menulevel. A subsequent command (first command, second command and/or thirdcommand) may reflect the changed position for the menu items.

In other embodiments, menu items (or hierarchical menu levels) may beexcluded based on a particular device or a location of a device. Thedevice on which exclusion is based may be based on any of the one ormore devices executing the various software instructions of themethodical user interface control system 1102.

The exclusion or restriction information may be stored, for example, instorage device 1120 as a data structure. Each device may have anidentifier such as a Media Access Control (MAC) address or other uniqueidentifier. The identifier of the device is not limited to a (MACaddress and other identifiers may be used, such as Internet Protocol(IP) address, machine name, etc. In an embodiment, one column in thetable may include the identifier, e.g., MAC address. A second column inthe table may include the menu item(s) or hierarchical menu levels thatare to be excluded from display, respectively, associated with theidentifier, e.g., MAC address.

In other embodiments, instead of a table (or tables), a list of menuitems and/or hierarchical menu levels are stored in association with theidentifier, e.g., MAC address.

The device identifiers, such as the MAC address, and the menu item(s)and/or hierarchical menu levels for exclusion may be input by anadministrator and/or one or more users with appropriate permissions.This exclusion information may be input when a first MUI module isinstalled into a device. In other embodiments, the exclusion informationmay be added after installation and periodically updated.

In certain embodiments, upon receiving the login historical data or inresponse to receiving a notification, before issuing any command fordisplaying any menu (and menu items), the hardware processor executingthe input manager 1052 may check the exclusion information in thestorage device 1120 to determine if any menu items for the initialdisplay menu or associated with the selection are to be excluded for thedevice(s).

In an embodiment, the menu manager 1054 may compare the deviceidentifier with the device identifier(s) listed in the exclusioninformation. When there is a match, certain menu items are to beexcluded from display on the MUI display 206. For example, when theinitial display menu (e.g., default menu) or a hierarchical menu levellower than the hierarchical menu level currently being displayed on theMUI display 206 as the current menu, which is associated with aselection, includes one or more menu items listed to be excluded, themenu manager 1054 may remove the excluded menu item(s) from the menuprior to issuing a display command and then issue the display commandwith the menu items removed. In this example, the removed menu item willnot be displayed on MUI display 206.

In other embodiments, certain menu items (or hierarchical menu levels)may be excluded based on what hierarchical menu level is currently beingdisplayed as the current menu (in the first portion) or the previousmenus (in the second portion). In an embodiment, one column in theexclusion table may include a menu identifier of a hierarchical menulevel. A second column in the table may include the menu item(s) orhierarchical menu levels that are to be excluded from display,respectively, associated with the menu identifier.

The menu identifier represents the hierarchical menu level that isdisplayable on either the first menu or second menu. The excluded menuitems are menu items that are unavailable to be selected from adisplayed hierarchical menu level. These menu items may be applicationspecific. In certain embodiments, when a hierarchical menu is displayed,as the current menu in the first portion 204 or the previous menu in thesecond portion 208, and a selection is made, prior to issuing a command,the menu manager 1054 checks the exclusion information to determinewhether any menu items associated with hierarchical menu level which isselected to be display should be excluded. Based on the determination,the menu manager 1054 may remove the excluded menu items from the menuprior to issuing a responsive command and then issue the responsivecommand with the menu items removed. This exclusion may be carried out,through the issuance of a separate exclusion command and/or instruction,or in the alternative, the exclusion can occur by modifying the first,second, and/or third display commands that provide the available menuitem(s) to be displayed.

In other embodiments, instead of a display or relocation command beingissued with the menu items removed, an exclusion command may be issuedby the exclusion manager 1058 in combination with the display orrelocation command. In this embodiment, the display command would haveall of the menu items associated with the menus and the exclusioncommand would cause the display manager 1050 to delete the executed menuitems included in the exclusion command prior to causing the display.

In other embodiments, a number of menu items to be displayed may belimited by the menu manager 1054 based on a frequency of usage. Forexample, in an embodiment, the number of menu items may be limited basedon a frequency of selection. In certain embodiments, the frequency canbe determined over a predetermined period of time. The frequency ofselection can be preset or customizable, and can include, for example,between 50%-80% frequency, although other frequencies of selection arecontemplated as well. By limiting display of menu items to include onlymenu items that are used at greater than a specific threshold frequency,the amount of clutter in the menuing system is reduced and the menuingexperience is streamlined.

In accordance with this embodiment, the input manager 1052 tracksselection of all menu items and stores the same in the storage device1120. In an embodiment, the list of previously selected menu items isstored in a data structure. For example, the data structure may be amenu item selection table or any other data structures (e.g., thosespecifically described herein).

In certain embodiments, a user's or users' selections may be trackedover a preset period of time. The period of time may be one day, oneweek, one month, or other preset or customizable periods of time. Thespecific period of time may be based on an application, such as aclinical trial or type of research, type of test, type of organization(e.g., university, corporate), etc. The tracking may be repeated foreach preset period of time.

Each time a notification is received by the hardware processor executingthe input manager 1052, within the preset period of time, the inputmanager 1052 may record, the user identifier, username, email address,and/or account number, the selected menu item and the time and date ofthe selection. The time and date may be obtained from a timestampincluded in the notification. In an embodiment, the user identifier andaccount number may be obtained from the login history table. In otherembodiments, the user identifier and account number may be included inthe notification.

At the end of a specific period of time, the input manager 1052determines a frequency of selection for each menu item. In anembodiment, the input manager 1052 may determine for a user identifier,the frequency of selection. The frequency of selection is based on thenumber of times that the menu item was selected verses a total number ofselections (within the specified period) by the user identifier.

In other embodiments, the determination may be based on account numberin addition to user identifier. For example, the input manager 1052 maydetermine a frequency of selection of a menu item by at least two useridentifiers having the same account number. In this example, users formteams, where a single account number is associated and/or linked withtwo or more user identifiers. In another example, a team can include twoor more account numbers associated and/or linked together. In still afurther example, teams can be formed whereby N unique users areassociated and/or linked with M unique account numbers, where N isgreater than M. Identifying user identifiers having the same accountnumber may be achieved using the shared account flag in the registrationtable in combination with the menu item selection table to determinethat the at least two user identifiers made a selection within theperiod of time.

For a menu item, a number of selections of the menu item is aggregatedfor the at least two user identifiers (as determined from the menu itemselection table). Similarly, the total number of selections isaggregated for the at least two user identifiers (also as determinedfrom the menu item selection table). The frequency is then based on theaggregated selections of the menu item and the aggregated totalselections.

In other embodiments, the frequency determination may be based onselections where the user identifier is associated with an accountnumber that is linked to other account numbers (e.g., a team of users).In accordance with this embodiment, the input manager 1052 may identifythe linked account numbers using the multiple account flag which is setto a specific value when the account number is linked. Once identified,the input manager 1052 may determine the frequency of selection by usingselections from a user identifier which is associated with one of thelinked account numbers. In this embodiment, selections from other useridentifiers or the same user identifier that is not associated with oneof the linked account numbers (in the case where the same useridentifier is associated with different account numbers) may be ignored(not used in the determination). Similar to above, the input manager1052 may determine the number of selections of a menu item and the totalnumber of selections to determine the frequency. In other embodiments,the methodical user interface control system 1102 may use selectionsfrom any user identifier(s) which is/are associated with one of thelinked account numbers for the determination (and may aggregate theselections).

In other embodiments, the frequency determination may be based onselections of at least two user identifiers where the user identifiersare associated with one or more account numbers that are linked to otheraccounts. In accordance with this embodiment, the hardware processorexecuting the input manager 1052 may identify the linked account numbersusing the multiple account flag which is set to a specific value whenthe account number is linked. Once the linked account numbers areidentified, the hardware processor executing the input manager 1052 mayfurther identify at least two user identifiers (associated with thelinked account numbers) that made selections within the period of time,using the menu item selection table.

For the identified at least two user identifiers that made a selection,for a menu item, a number of selections of the menu item is aggregatedfor the at least two user identifiers (as determined from the menu itemselection table). Similarly, the total number of selections isaggregated for the at least two user identifiers (also as determinedfrom the menu item selection table). The frequency is then based on theaggregated selections of the menu item and the aggregated totalselections.

In other embodiments, the frequency determination may be based on allselections regardless of the user identifier and/or account numbers. Inaccordance with this embodiment, the input manager 1052, for each menuitem, may determine the number of selections of the respective menu itemverses the total number of selections (of any menu item) within theperiod of time to determine the frequency.

The frequency described above can be used in conjunction with a limitingcommand issued by the menu manager 1054. The functionality of thelimiting command is similar to the functionality of the exclusioncommand, as discussed above. The limiting command serves to limitcertain menu items to be displayed based on a criterion or two or morecriteria. For example, the limiting command can be based on: (a) thefrequency with which a user has previously selected the item whilehe/she was logged into his/her account. In one example, thisdetermination can occur based on a given period of time. In anotherexample, it can be based on the number of times a given user logged intohis/her account. Another criterion includes: (b) the frequency withwhich at least two users have previously selected the item while theywere logged into an account. In certain embodiments, this can include anamount of time for a given user or based on the total time the userswere logged into their accounts. Alternatively, it can be based on thetotal number of logins of a given user or the total number of logins inthe aggregate. Still further, the criterion can include: (c) thefrequency with which a user has previously selected the item whilehe/she was logged into an account associated with multiple accounts; or(d) the frequency with which at least two users have previously selectedthe item while they were logged into one or more accounts associatedwith multiple accounts. For both of these examples, as described withregard to examples (a) and (b), above, the frequency can be based on oneor more combinations of the period of time one or more users remainedlogged into their accounts or the number of account logins. Stillfurther, the criteria can include: (e) the frequency with which anyusers have previously selected the item while logged into any account;and/or (f) the frequency with which any users have previously selectedthe item while logged into any account associated with multipleaccounts. In these two examples, the previously selected item can betracked with the use of a data structure, such as table (or any otherdata structure described herein), which can be periodically clearedafter a given period of time elapses or a certain number of total loginsby one or more users occurs. In certain embodiments, the criteriadescribed in (c), (d), and (f), above, can be applied to team accounts,in particular, where users of those accounts are team members with oneor more team that are associated with multiple accounts.

When the determined frequency is greater than or equal to a thresholdpercentage, menu items may be limited for an immediate subsequent periodof time. The threshold may be based on the application. In anembodiment, the threshold percentage may be 50% or more. In otherembodiments, the threshold percentage may be 60% or more. In yet otherembodiments, the threshold percentage may be 70% or more. In furtherembodiments, the threshold percentage may be 80% or more. In otherembodiments, the threshold may be a percentage range. For example, thethreshold percentage may be in a range of between 75% and 85%. Thespecific percentages have been described herein by way of example, andthe threshold percentage is not limited to the same. Any thresholdpercentage or range may be used.

In other embodiments, a ratio of selection may be used in place of afrequency of selection. The ratio is defined as the number of selectionsof the menu item divided by a number of selections of other menu items.For example, ratios of 9:1, 7:1, 5:1, 3:1, or any other suitable ratiomay be used.

In other embodiments, a number of times the menu item is selected may beused in place of a frequency of selection. For example, a specificselection threshold may be used instead of a percentage. The specificselection threshold may be 5, 10, 15, etc.

Once it is determined that the menu items may be limited, the hardwareprocessor may determine which menu items may be displayed on the MUIdisplay 206 in the immediate subsequent period of time, and which menuitem(s) are to be limited. In accordance with embodiments, any menu itemdetermined to have a frequency above the threshold percentage may bedisplayed (e.g., not limited).

In further embodiments, a display limitation may be based on menu itemshaving a selection frequency below a certain threshold, e.g., below 50%,40%, 30%, 20%, 10%, etc.

In several embodiments, limiting commands can be issued based on variouscriteria. For example, one or more menu item(s) could be excluded basedon menu item(s) being designated as unavailable to a particular user.This can occur, for example, if a particular user has not selected oneor more menu item(s) over a certain period of time. Similarly, one ormore menu item(s) could be limited based on a menu item(s) beingdesigned as unavailable to an aggregation of two or more users. In thisexample, the frequency of two or more users selecting or not selectingone or more menu item(s) over a period of time can affect whether alimiting command issues for those menu item(s). Other embodimentscontemplate issuing limiting commands in a similar fashion for theprevious two examples, but for individual team and/or aggregation ofteams (i.e., based on the frequency of selection of menu item(s) byusers that are associated with teams). Still further, other embodimentscan limit menu items based on a particular machine or aggregation ofmachines that are executing the computer application that one or moreusers have logged into.

In an embodiment, the menu manager 1054 may issue a limiting command tothe hardware processor executing the display manager 1050. In accordancewith this embodiment, the limiting command may include the menu itemsdetermined to have a frequency above the threshold percentage. Thelimiting command may be issued in conjunction with the one or moredisplay commands. Upon receipt of the display command and the limitingcommand, the display manager 1050 may delete or remove menu itemsincluded in the display command that are not also included in thelimiting command prior to causing the menu items to be displayed on theMUI display 206.

In other embodiments, the limiting command may include menu items otherthan the menu items determined to have a frequency above the thresholdpercentage. Upon receipt of the display command and the limitingcommand, the display manager 1050 may delete or remove menu itemsincluded in the display command that are also included in the limitingcommand prior to causing the menu items to be displayed on the MUIdisplay 206.

In other embodiments, instead of a separate limiting command, thedisplay command may be modified by the menu manager 1054 to remove menuitems other than the menu items determined to have the frequency abovethe threshold percentage.

Through use of the limiting command, menu items (user-selectable optionsor choices) may be limited to fewer than a number of menu items on thefirst menu and the second menu. For example, the first menu may includenine menu items, but the use of a limiting command restricts the totalnumber of menu items to be displayed to be less than nine. For example,a total number of menu items (user-selectable options) may be fewer thanor equal to seven (or fewer than the seven), fewer than or equal tofive, fewer than or equal to three, or fewer than or equal to any othernumber. The number of menus (limited number) described herein is just anexample, and the number may be any number selected to provide a limiteddisplay to avoid or prevent the user from being overwhelmed withchoices. In embodiments, menu items that are excluded from display dueto a limiting command are provided in the advanced context menu 270. Inembodiments, menu items excluded from display based on a limiting numbermay be selected according to frequency of selection.

In some embodiments, if after determining the number of menu items thathas a selection frequency greater than the threshold percentage and thenumber of menu items is greater than the limiting number, e.g., seven,the menu manager 1054 may increase the threshold percentage to lower thenumber of menu items that has a selection frequency greater than thethreshold percentage. Thus, the menu manager 1054 may be configured toselect and display a specific number of menu items having the highestselection frequencies.

In an embodiment, the limiting function may operate as follows, asapplied to any type of MUI module. The threshold percentage may be usedto determine which menu items will be displayed (e.g., not limited). Forexample, a threshold percentage of 90% or 80% may be used, meaning thatonly menu items with a selection frequency higher than 90% or 80% aredisplayed. In an example, the selection frequency may be applied basedon user login sessions, meaning that only menu items used 90% or 80% ofthe time that a user logs in are displayed. The limiting function may beapplied to one or more menu levels, i.e., to a first menu level, asecond menu level, etc. In some embodiments, the threshold may varybased on the menu level (e.g., lower levels may have lower frequencyrequirements for display—as there are often a greater number of optionsat lower levels, they may be selected less often.) Those menu items thatdo not meet the threshold (e.g., used 10% or less, or used 20% or less)are displayed in the advanced context menu, which changes according tothe current menu being displayed. In this manner, the user's choices arelimited to those that are most frequently used throughout the MUI,permitting significantly faster navigation by the user. In certainembodiments, the choices that are excluded as described above, can bemade available exclusively with the advanced context menu. Thus, for the90% example, if only 90% of the available menu meets the threshold, onlythose will be displayed in the current menu while the balance (10% inthis example) will be displayed in the advanced context menu in responseto the advanced context menu selector (also referred to throughout alsoas the advanced selector or advanced context selector).

The 90%/10% and/or 80%/20% values are exemplary only and other valuesmay be selected according to the MUI module being implemented. In anexample, the limiting function may also be based on a default protocolas compared to a user customized protocol. For example, a vendor maymarket an assay kit including a standard protocol that further permitscustomer modifications. The standard protocol options may be included inthe available menu items displayed in the active portion as the usermoves through the menuing system, while the available customermodifications may be displayed in the advanced context menu. Thisdivision of menu items may be adjusted based on actual user operationafter that particular assay kit has been used several times by a user.

Similarly, by using the limiting command, menu items (user-selectableoptions) may be limited to fewer than a number of menu items on thefirst menu, the second menu and the third menu.

In certain embodiments, when the period of time expires, the menu itemselection table may delete the selection history for a newdetermination. In this example, the menu item(s) that were previouslyexcluded will again be made available.

In embodiments, the MUI may provide team integration via communicationsbetween multiple MUI modules. An integrated system managed by systemsconsistent with embodiments hereof may be managed by multiple MUImodules configured for completing different tasks by differentoperators. For example, using the example of a laboratory informationmanagement system (LIMS), an admin console module, an experimentaldesign module, an inventory control module, an experimental analysismodule, and an experimental procedure module may be provided. The adminconsole module may provide the features and functionality to manage thevarious users, operators, instruments, and teams. Th experimental designmodule may permit one or more members of a team to design experimentsthat other members of the team will conduct. The inventory controlmodule may permit other team members to review inventory and order moreconsumables, taking into account experimental history and futurescheduled experiments. the experimental procedure module may permit teammembers responsible for running the experiments to access the alreadydesigned experiments and implement them, through interaction between theMUI, the operator, and external systems. Finally, the experimentalanalysis module may permit other team members to access results ofexperiments after they have been conducted. Based on user and team setupprepared via the admin console, each user may log-in to the system andbe provided with access to the requisite modules for completing thetasks that they are responsible for. In embodiments, the requisitemodules may be installed on computing devices in appropriate locationsfor completing tasks (i.e., an experimental procedure module may beinstalled on a device connected to a laboratory instrument while anadmin console module may be installed on a desktop device). Accordingly,the systems provided herein permit the integration of workflows betweenmultiple team members through the use of a single and consistentinterface.

In embodiments, the display manager 1050 may be configured to provideone or more icons or animations to designate a “working” status of themethodical user interface control system 1102. When the methodical userinterface control system 1102 is processing, a working status indicationis provided to alert a user that processing is occurring to preventimpatience. In an embodiment, a working status indication may beprovided via a light fountain display presented in a portion of thescreen not occupied by active or historical portions. For example, abottom portion of the screen, centered beneath the active portion, maybe used for a light fountain display. The light fountain may provide aseries of cascading bars shown in colors consistent with the remainderof the MUI. In an embodiment, the cascading bars may be presented inwhite and various shades of blue. In an embodiment, the bars arepresented in four rows of elongated bars. Each row may contain, forexample, a plurality of bars between two and twenty of varying lengths.When the system is processing, the bars may flash on and off indifferent shades of white and blue and in different lengths, giving theimpression of a waterfall or light fountain.

Embodiment described herein further include methods of designing userinterface system. For example, such methods may include the design ofMUIs consistent with embodiments hereof. Methods of designing userinterface systems may include generating hierarchical menu trees asdescribed herein. Hierarchical menu trees may include a series of menus,each including menu items that lead to a subsequent series of menus.Methods of designing user interface systems may further includeselecting execution menus to terminate branches of the hierarchical menutree, wherein the execution menus are configured to execute one or morecommands within the software, to provide one or more sets ofinstructions to a user, and/or to output one or more commands to aconnected device, system, instrument, or machine. Methods of designinguser interface systems may further include configuring each of the menusin the hierarchical menu tree with one or more display modes, includingat least an active display mode for display in an active portion of auser interface and an historical display mode for display in anhistorical portion of user interface. Further aspects of methods of userinterface design may further include design methods for any of the menufunctionalities described herein.

In further embodiments, MUIs consistent with the disclosure may provideintegrated help options during hierarchical menu navigation. A user mayrequest help with a given menu by pressing a particular key combinationand/or by accessing a help option displayed by the advanced contextmenu. Integrated help options may include one or more dialog boxeddesigned to provide explanations to a user regarding the optionspresented. As discussed above, the MUI provides a large amount of blankor background space. Thus, help options may be presented as pop-ups ordialog boxes pointing to the portions of the MUI for which a user seekshelp without compromising the original MUI display. In embodiments,enabling the help functionality may cause a dialog box to appear as auser hovers over or otherwise indicates any item in the MUI.

In further embodiments, the MUI historical portion may be furtheradapted to display menu items of menus subsequent to the current menu.For example, as a user navigates a current menu, they may, for example,scroll a vertical wheel, causing different menu items to be highlightedor emphasized. A submenu related to the highlighted menu item may bedisplayed in the historical portion to provide a visual representationof a subsequent menu to the current menu including future items that canbe subsequently selected.

In embodiments, as discussed above, the first active portion and thesecond historical portion are each adapted to for consistent display ina same portion of the MUI. Although the positioning of each of theseportions is not limited to a specific place on the MUI, in certainembodiments, the location, once selected, is maintained. Accordingly,the active portion of the MUI display is adapted to be consistentlydisplayed within a first same area of the UI display to optimize auser's focus while interacting with the UI display and the historicalportion of the MUI display is adapted to be consistently displayedwithin a second same area of the UI display to optimize a user's focuswhile interacting with the UI display.

The prior description provides example menu configurations for providinga UI display of multiple menus in a hierarchical menu tree. FIGS. 2D-2Mprovide additional examples of menu display configurations. Thefollowing menu display configurations may be used, without limitation,in any combination with each other and with the menu configurationspreviously disclosed. For example, selection of a particular menu itemanywhere in the hierarchical menu tree may cause the processor toexecute commands to cause the UI display to shift to any of the menuconfigurations described herein. In particular, specific menu displayconfigurations may be associated with specific menu selections.

FIG. 2D shows another example of a menu display configuration in oneembodiment. FIG. 2D illustrates a two wheel configuration in which thefirst wheel option has sub-options in a second wheel. For instance,selecting an option in a first wheel of options displays in the secondwheel, the sub-options associated with the selected option. In anembodiment, a first portion 214 of the display may initially display thefirst wheel, and responsive to a selection of an option from the firstwheel, the first wheel with its options may be relocated to a secondportion 216 adjacent to the first portion. The first portion may thendisplay the second wheel with sub-options to the first option, forexample, in a parallel fashion (first wheel displayed in parallel to thesecond wheel in the same visual orientation).

In further embodiments of this embodiment, both the first wheel and thesecond wheel may be displayed in the first portion 214 of the MUIdisplay 206. The first wheel may be displayed in a first sub-portion ofthe first portion 214 and the second wheel may be displayed in a secondsub-portion of the first portion 214. As used herein, sub-portions maybe divided portions of a larger portion. Sub-portions may also be usedinterchangeably with sub-sections. In embodiments, selection of a menuitem in the first wheel may be caused simply by clicking on any menuitem in the first wheel or by rotating any menu item in the first wheelto a prominent, emphasized position. Selection of an item from a firstmenu on the first wheel may cause the second menu displayed on thesecond wheel to be revised accordingly. In still further embodiments ofthis embodiment, the first portion 214 may be split into more than twosub-portions, with each sub-portion including a wheel displaying acorresponding menu. Thus, three wheels may display a first menu, asecond menu, and a third menu, representing different levels of ahierarchical menu tree. In another example, three wheels may display asecond, third, and fourth menu. Other examples may include any number ofwheels.

In further embodiments, multiple wheels may be displayed in multiplesub-portions of the first portion 204 to permit the user to select frommultiple menus at a same hierarchical menu level. For example, selectionof a specific menu item at one menu level may lead to the display ofmultiple submenus at the same level. Thus, selection of an item at asecond menu level may lead to display of multiple third menus, eachcontaining a plurality of third menu items. In embodiments, the multiplesubmenus displayed may be execution menus, permitting a user to makemultiple execution menu selections concurrently. In embodiments, wheremultiple submenus are displayed, the multiple submenus may be related orotherwise associated with one another.

FIG. 2E shows yet another example of a menu display configuration in oneembodiment. In this display configuration, two wheels are compressedinto one wheel. Wheel option has sub-options which are expressed withinthe one wheel associated with the active wheel option. In thisconfiguration, the first portion and the second portion of the displayoverlap but still all menu items are visible (or can be made visible byexpanding in case of collapsed items, sliding or rotating a wheel ofitems). For instance, the second wheel of options may be displayedwithin the first wheel. The first wheel of options may be rotatable inone direction (e.g., vertically up and down) while the second wheel ofoptions may be rotatable in another direction (e.g., horizontally sidesways, left and right). Selected path is also made visible in the secondportion. For instance, selecting ‘Sub-option 2’ shown in the displaymoves that selected option below the ‘First Wheel Option 1’.

FIGS. 2F-2G show still yet another example of a menu displayconfiguration in one embodiment. The figures show switching of wheeloptions from horizontal to vertical. FIG. 2F shows a menu of optionsdisplayed in a graphical wheel, for example, whose displayed options arerotatable in horizontal direction (left and right). The wheel isdisplayed in a first portion of a graphical user interface display. Uponselecting an option (a menu item in the list of options), the graphicalwheel is switched to a vertically rotatable wheel. For instance, thewheel is moved or relocated to a second portion of the graphical userinterface display, and the first portion of the graphical user interfacedisplay now displays a list of sub-options related to the optionselected in the previous menu of options.

In one embodiment, the second portion of the display may display up to athreshold number of menu levels, for example, after which a differentvisualization configuration may be employed for displaying the past menulevels, to keep the second portion from growing too large.

For instance, referring to FIG. 2C, if there are more than a thresholdnumber of menu levels (as an example, FIG. 2C shows 2 levels (202,210)), a visualization mechanism may be employed that is able tovisualize all past menu levels without having to grow the second portionof the display (e.g., FIG. 2C at 208). Consider for example, a thresholdnumber to be 3. In that example, the second portion of the display mayshow 3 menu levels. When an additional choice for the next level is made(e.g., 4-th menu level), the second portion may show the most recentpast 3 selections (the bottom 3 levels), with the items in the secondportion made scrollable up and down. So, in this example, the first menulevel choice is visible by scrolling on the second portion. As anotherexample, the second portion may always show the top 2 levels, i.e., thefirst 2 decisions, and the last decision. In this way, the user is shownan overall context of a workflow, for instance, top-down. Tapping orscrolling the second portion allows the user to expand out the menuitems, for example, like an accordion.

In another aspect, a search function may be provided associated with awheel. Search keywords allow for filtering the wheel options availableto the user. The search function helps in handling a long wheel ofoptions or multi-wheel of options, which may take a long time tonavigate.

FIGS. 2H-2J show an example of the first portion and the second portiondisplayed as a series of concentric circles in one embodiment. Referringto FIG. 2H, a dial 220 may be rotated clockwise or counterclockwise toview in an option window 218, a menu item or item to select. Tapping onthe area of the dial (e.g., circle) 220 selects the option. Selecting anoption, for example, viewed via an option window 218, transitions theuser interface to a configuration shown in FIG. 21. For instance, inFIG. 21, concentric dials expand inside out, showing another concentriccircle to represent another level (e.g., sub-level) of menu items orpaths. Sub-options may be viewed via an option window 222 on that circle224 (also referred to as a dial) by rotating that dial 224 clockwise orcounterclockwise. Selection of an option in that level (shown assub-option ‘n’) 222 may be made by tapping on the area of that circle224 (that is non-overlapping with the inner circle or dial 220). Inanother embodiment, selecting an option from the dial or circular menuuser interface (for example, as shown in FIG. 2H) may transition theuser interface state to the configuration shown in FIG. 2J. Forinstance, the next level of option selection billows out from theselected option, expanding the dial to show another inner dial 224 withan option window 222. In an embodiment, the number of options that canbe viewed on an option window (e.g., 218 and 222) need not be limited,such that an unlimited number of options may be shown and selected asapplicable for an application.

In an embodiment, an option window (e.g., 218) may be enlarged to show aselected option (e.g., as highlighted) and one or more unselectedoptions, for example, an unselected option that appears before theselected option and another unselected option that appears after theselected option.

In another aspect, an option window (e.g., 219) may show more than oneitem or option at a time, for instance, 3 menu items or options. In thisexample, tapping on a menu item in the option window selects the option.After a selection is made, the selected option may be displayed in ahighlighted format or another differentiating format, for instance, todistinguish the selected option from unselected options appearing in theoption window.

In another embodiment, the relocation command may specify that thesecond portion is concentric with the first portion and that therelocated menu be displayed adjacent to the first portion (andconcentric) where the first portion and the second portion are to bedisplayed on the MUI display 206 as a series of concentric circles. Forexample, the first portion may be displayed as the center circle of theseries of concentric circles, and a relocated menu level(s) of thehierarchy being displayed as the circles outside or surrounding thecenter circle.

FIG. 2K shows a tree type of menu levels in an embodiment.

The hierarchical menu tree shown in FIG. 2K includes a first menu ofmenu items, a second menu of submenu items, a third menu of sub-submenuitems, and four execution menus. One execution menu is associated withsubmenu item 1 and three more are associated with sub-submenu items 1-3.Selection of menu item 1 from the first menu leads to display of thesecond menu of submenu. Selection of submenu item 1 leads to anexecution menu for submenu item 1 in which process parameters may beselected. Selection of submenu item 2 leads to a third menu ofsub-submenu items. Selection of any one of sub-submenu items 1-3 leadsto execution menus for these respective third menu items.

FIG. 2L shows another example of a menu display configuration in oneembodiment. A graphical element 242 such as a wheel or a slider (oranother graphical element) is displayed in a portion 240 of a displayscreen. The graphical element 242, e.g., a wheel, is ordered with themost “n” recent items first (reverse chronological) 244 with a searchfunction such a search box or area 246 next followed by a list, forexample, an alphanumerically sorted list, of the all of the menu items248. In another embodiment, the menu items shown at 248 appear asindexed, for instance, as a search term is entered in the search box246. The entire wheel 242 is made scrollable. For instance, a user canscroll through the entire wheel 242 or enter a search string in thesearch box 246. Entering a search term in the search area 246 displaysmenu items that match the search term as a search character is entered.For instance, on each character entered, one or more menu items closestto matching the search character(s) are indexed at 248. The wheel 240 isbifurcated into two independent wheels, one that displays recentlychosen menu items 244 and another that displays indexed list or all menuitems 248. The two wheels 244 and 248 are scrollable or movableindependently from one another. So, for example, the entire wheel 242 ismade to move or scroll as one wheel. Responsive to receiving ordetecting an entry of a search term or character in the search area 246,the wheel is bifurcated into two separate wheels 244 and 248, which canbe independently scrolled. One of the two separate wheels, e.g., 248,shows a filtered list of menu items based on the search.

FIGS. 2M-2O show examples of scrollable wheels that scroll or slide froma first menu item to a last menu item and back from the last menu itemto the first menu item. In this embodiment, a graphical element (e.g., awheel or slider) that shows the menu items do not revolve or rotatearound fully but stops at the last menu item or the first menu item (ifrotating from the last menu item). In this way, for example, thebeginning and end of the menu are always apparent because the two do notmerge or connect. This technique reduces computer processing cycle timebecause the wheel and/or the slider is able to convey (and user is ableto immediately understand) the full menu of choices with clearindication as to where or which is the first menu item and where orwhich is the last menu item in the choices presented by the wheel and/orthe slider such that the wheel or the slider need not repeatedly scrollin an attempt to determine which menu item is the first and which is thelast, or to determine whether all menu items have been visited.

In embodiments, the wheel and/or the slider need not rotate fully; forexample, do not make a full revolution or complete circle. For instance,the wheel and/or the slider rotates or slides from a beginning menu itemto an ending menu item, and reverses to rotate or slide back from theending menu item to the beginning menu item. In this way, for example,the beginning and end of the menu are always apparent because the twoare spaced apart as to not merge or come together. This techniquedecreases processing time because the wheel and/or the slider is able toconvey (and user is able to immediately understand) the full menu ofchoices with clear indication as to where or which is the first menuitem and where or which is the last menu item in the choices presentedby the wheel and/or the slider. Further, as the wheel and/or sliderrotates, selectable choices can be displayed in a more prominentfashion, such as using larger text, bolder font, etc. Choices that werepreviously selectable when the wheel and/or slider was rotated/slid to adifferent position or will be selectable as the wheel and/or slidercontinues to rotate/slide, can be displayed in a less prominent fashion,such as by shrinking or fading the text. In one embodiment, the moreprominently displayed choices can be displayed to appear as if they arecloser to the user vis-à-vis the less prominent choices.

Referring to FIG. 2M, the first menu item 252 is shown in the center ofthe wheel (or slider) 250. A menu item shown at the center may be shownin highlighted format (e.g., bigger characters, different color font,etc.). Blank space appears before the first menu item (e.g., above thecenter of the wheel where the first menu item is displayed). The nextmenu items (e.g., 254, 256) appear adjacent to (e.g., below) the firstmenu item. Scrolling the wheel (e.g., in vertical direction) showsadditional menu items, e.g., as shown at FIG. 2N. For instance, shown inFIG. 2N, next menu items are shown as the wheel 250 is scrolled up. FIG.20 shows the last menu item at the center of the wheel, with theprevious menu items appearing adjacent to (e.g., above) the last menuitem. The wheel or the slider 250 in this embodiment does not rotatearound to show the first menu item after the last menu item 258. Insteadthe wheel stops rotating at the last menu item 258. Below the last menuitem 258 shows blank space. Similarly, navigating back (e.g., scrollingthe wheel in the opposite direction) shows the previous menu items up tothe first menu item.

While the example graphical wheel shown in FIGS. 2M-2O illustrates avertical wheel, a horizontal wheel would function in similar manner. Forinstance, a first menu item may appear at a center of a horizontal wheelwith the next menu items appearing horizontally adjacent to the firstmenu item (e.g., right of the center). Scrolling the wheel to the leftin this example would display additional menu items. When the last menuitem is reached by scrolling, that last menu item appears at the centerwith blank space beyond the last menu item (e.g., to the right of thelast menu item). In another aspect, the orientation of the rotation maybe reversed: e.g., with vertical wheel, scrolling down (instead of up)to navigate from the first to the last menu item; with horizontal wheel,scrolling right to navigate from the first to the last menu item. Thenumber of menu items (options) shown on a wheel at one time isconfigurable, for example, based on screen size and/or area of thescreen allocated for the wheel, etc., and is not limited to 6 itemsshown in FIG. 2N.

A non-limiting application of such a user interface is in selecting achannel to watch on television (TV). Broader categories may be displayedon top horizontal area with finer categorizations stacked below, andleaf item may be displayed vertically, for example, on a vertical wheel.For example, referring to FIG. 2E, the ‘Wheel Option 1’ may represent agenre and the ‘Sub-options 1’ may represent shows and/or moviesorganized in a grid.

In an embodiment, the methodical user interface control system 1102provides an interface to a user for the running of a process. A processmay include conducting an experiment, performing one or moremanufacturing operations, or any other procedure.

The following describes in detail various instructions for conductingexperiments consistent with embodiment hereof. Instructions forconducting an experiment may be for manipulating, designing, performing,reviewing, measuring, analyzing, storing, and conducting any other taskrelated to the experiment. The experiment may be but is not limited toone or more assays. The methodical user interface control system 1102may be incorporated into and/or associated with an assay system andprovide commands to generate a MUI display 206 for the system. The MUIdisplay 206, in response to the commands is able to display or provide avisual representation of a path of a workflow and/or menu items for theassay. The assays may include one or more electrochemiluminescence (ECL)assays.

The methods of the present embodiments may be used in conjunction with avariety of assay devices and/or formats. The assay devices may include,e.g., assay modules, such as assay plates, cartridges, multi-well assayplates, reaction vessels, test tubes, cuvettes, flow cells, assay chips,lateral flow devices, etc., having assay reagents (which may includetargeting agents or other binding reagents) added as the assayprogresses or pre-loaded in the wells, chambers, or assay regions of theassay module. These devices may employ a variety of assay formats forspecific binding assays, e.g., immunoassay or immunochromatographicassays. Illustrative assay devices and formats are described hereinbelow. In certain embodiments, the methods of the present embodimentsmay employ assay reagents that are stored in a dry state and the assaydevices/kits may further comprise or be supplied with desiccantmaterials for maintaining the assay reagents in a dry state. The assaydevices preloaded with the assay reagents can greatly improve the speedand reduce the complexity of assay measurements while maintainingexcellent stability during storage. The dried assay reagents may be anyassay reagent that can be dried and then reconstituted prior to use inan assay. These include, but are not limited to, binding reagents usefulin binding assays, enzymes, enzyme substrates, indicator dyes and otherreactive compounds that may be used to detect an analyte of interest.The assay reagents may also include substances that are not directlyinvolved in the mechanism of detection but play an auxiliary role in anassay including, but not limited to, blocking agents, stabilizingagents, detergents, salts, pH buffers, preservatives, etc. Reagents maybe present in free form or supported on solid phases including thesurfaces of compartments (e.g., chambers, channels, flow cells, wells,etc.) in the assay modules or the surfaces of colloids, beads, or otherparticulate supports.

A wide variety of solid phases are suitable for use in the methods ofthe present embodiments including conventional solid phases from the artof binding assays. Solid phases may be made from a variety of differentmaterials including polymers (e.g., polystyrene and polypropylene),ceramics, glass, composite materials (e.g., carbon-polymer compositessuch as carbon-based inks). Suitable solid phases include the surfacesof macroscopic objects such as an interior surface of an assay container(e.g., test tubes, cuvettes, flow cells, cartridges, wells in amulti-well plate, etc.), slides, assay chips (such as those used in geneor protein chip measurements), pins or probes, beads, filtration media,lateral flow media (for example, filtration membranes used in lateralflow test strips), etc.

Suitable solid phases also include particles (including but not limitedto colloids or beads) commonly used in other types of particle-basedassays e.g., magnetic, polypropylene, and latex particles, materialstypically used in solid-phase synthesis e.g., polystyrene andpolyacrylamide particles, and materials typically used inchromatographic applications e.g., silica, alumina, polyacrylamide,polystyrene. The materials may also be a fiber such as a carbon fibril.Microparticles may be inanimate or alternatively, may include animatebiological entities such as cells, viruses, bacterium and the like.

The particles used in the present method may be comprised of anymaterial suitable for attachment to one or more binding partners and/orlabels, and that may be collected via, e.g., centrifugation, gravity,filtration or magnetic collection. A wide variety of different types ofparticles that may be attached to binding reagents are sold commerciallyfor use in binding assays. These include non-magnetic particles as wellas particles comprising magnetizable materials which allow the particlesto be collected with a magnetic field. In one embodiment, the particlesare comprised of a conductive and/or semi conductive material, e.g.,colloidal gold particles.

The microparticles may have a wide variety of sizes and shapes. By wayof example and not limitation, microparticles may be between 5nanometers and 100 micrometers. Preferably microparticles have sizesbetween 20 nm and 10 micrometers. The particles may be spherical,oblong, rod-like, etc., or they may be irregular in shape.

The particles used in the present method may be coded to allow for theidentification of specific particles or subpopulations of particles in amixture of particles. The use of such coded particles has been used toenable multiplexing of assays employing particles as solid phasesupports for binding assays. In one approach, particles are manufacturedto include one or more fluorescent dyes and specific populations ofparticles are identified based on the intensity and/or relativeintensity of fluorescence emissions at one or more wave lengths. Thisapproach has been used in the Luminex xMAP systems (see, e.g., U.S. Pat.No. 6,939,720) and the Becton Dickinson Cytometric Bead Array systems.Alternatively, particles may be coded through differences in otherphysical properties such as size, shape, imbedded optical patterns andthe like.

The methods of the embodiments can be used with a variety of methods formeasuring the amount of an analyte and, in particular, measuring theamount of an analyte bound to a solid phase. Techniques that may be usedinclude, but are not limited to, techniques known in the art such ascell culture-based assays, binding assays (including agglutinationtests, immunoassays, serology assays, nucleic acid assays such ashybridization assays, etc.), enzymatic assays, colorimetric assays, etc.Other suitable techniques will be readily apparent to one of averageskill in the art. Some measurement techniques allow for measurements tobe made by visual inspection, others may require or benefit from the useof an instrument to conduct the measurement.

Methods for measuring the amount of an analyte include label freetechniques, which include but are not limited to i) techniques thatmeasure changes in mass or refractive index at a surface after bindingof an analyte to a surface (e.g., surface acoustic wave techniques,surface plasmon resonance sensors, ellipsometric techniques, etc.), ii)mass spectrometric techniques (including techniques like MALDI, SELDI,etc. that can measure analytes on a surface), iii) chromatographic orelectrophoretic techniques, and iv) fluorescence techniques (which maybe based on the inherent fluorescence of an analyte), etc.

Methods for measuring the amount of an analyte also include techniquesthat measure analytes through the detection of labels which may beattached directly or indirectly (e.g., through the use of labeledbinding partners of an analyte) to an analyte. Suitable labels includelabels that can be directly visualized (e.g., particles that may be seenvisually and labels that generate a measurable signal such as lightscattering, optical absorbance, fluorescence, chemiluminescence,electrochemiluminescence, radioactivity, magnetic fields, etc.). Labelsthat may be used also include enzymes or other chemically reactivespecies that have a chemical activity that leads to a measurable signalsuch as light scattering, absorbance, fluorescence, etc. The use ofenzymes as labels has been well established in in Enzyme-LinkedImmunoSorbent Assays, also called ELISAs, Enzyme ImmunoAssays or EIAs.In the ELISA format, an unknown amount of antigen is affixed to asurface and then a specific antibody is washed over the surface so thatit can bind to the antigen. This antibody is linked to an enzyme, and inthe final step a substance is added that the enzyme converts to aproduct that provides a change in a detectable signal. The formation ofproduct may be detectable, e.g., due a difference, relative to thesubstrate, in a measurable property such as absorbance, fluorescence,chemiluminescence, light scattering, etc. Certain (but not all)measurement methods that may be used with solid phase binding methodsaccording to the embodiments may benefit from or require a wash step toremove unbound components (e.g., labels) from the solid phaseAccordingly, the methods of the embodiments may comprise such a washstep.

Methods disclosed herein may be performed manually, using automatedtechnology, or both. Automated technology may be partially automated,e.g., one or more modular instruments, or a fully integrated, automatedinstrument.

Example automated systems are discussed and described in InternationalPatent Appl. Pub. Nos. WO 2018/017156 and WO 2017/015636 andInternational Patent Appl. Pub. No. WO 2016/164477, each of which isincorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

Automated systems (modules and fully integrated) on which the methodsherein may be carried out may comprise the following automatedsubsystems: computer subsystem(s) that may comprise hardware (e.g.,personal computer, laptop, hardware processor, disc, keyboard, display,printer), software (e.g., processes such as drivers, driver controllers,and data analyzers), and database(s); liquid handling subsystem(s),e.g., sample handling and reagent handling, e.g., robotic pipettinghead, syringe, stirring apparatus, ultrasonic mixing apparatus, magneticmixing apparatus; sample, reagent, and consumable storing and handlingsubsystem(s), e.g., robotic manipulator, tube or lid or foil piercingapparatus, lid removing apparatus, conveying apparatus such as linearand circular conveyors and robotic manipulators, tube racks, platecarriers, trough carriers, pipet tip carriers, plate shakers;centrifuges, assay reaction subsystem(s), e.g., fluid-based andconsumable-based (such as tube and multi well plate); container andconsumable washing subsystem(s), e.g., plate washing apparatus; magneticseparator or magnetic particle concentrator subsystem(s), e.g., flowcell, tube, and plate types; cell and particle detection, classificationand separation subsystem(s), e.g., flow cytometers and Coulter counters;detection subsystem(s) such as colorimetric, nephelometric,fluorescence, and ECL detectors; temperature control subsystem(s), e.g.,air handling, air cooling, air warming, fans, blowers, water baths;waste subsystem(s), e.g., liquid and solid waste containers; globalunique identifier (GUI) detecting subsystem(s) e.g., 1D and 2D bar-codescanners such as flat bed and wand types; sample identifier detectionsubsystem(s), e.g., 1D and 2D bar-code scanners such as flat bed andwand types. Analytical subsystem(s), e.g., chromatography systems suchas high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), fast-protein liquidchromatography (FPLC), and mass spectrometer can also be modules orfully integrated. Automated systems consistent with embodiments hereofmay be controlled and/or managed by the methodical user interfacecontrol system 1102.

Systems or modules that perform sample identification and preparationmay be combined with (or be adjoined to or adjacent to or roboticallylinked or coupled to) systems or modules that perform assays and thatperform detection or that perform both. Multiple modular systems of thesame kind may be combined to increase throughput. Modular system(s) maybe combined with module(s) that carry out other types of analysis suchas chemical, biochemical, and nucleic acid analysis.

The automated system may allow batch, continuous, random-access, andpoint-of-care workflows and single, medium, and high sample throughput.

The system may include, for example, one or more of the followingdevices: plate sealer (e.g., Zymark), plate washer (e.g., BioTek,TECAN), reagent dispenser and/or automated pipetting station and/orliquid handling station (e.g., TECAN, Zymark, Labsystems, Beckman,Hamilton), incubator (e.g., Zymark), plate shaker (e.g., Q.Instruments,Inheco, Thermo Fisher Scientific), compound library or sample storageand/or compound and/or sample retrieval module. One or more of thesedevices is coupled to the apparatus via a robotic assembly such that theentire assay process can be performed automatically. According to analternate embodiment, containers (e.g., plates) are manually movedbetween the apparatus and various devices (e.g., stacks of plates).

The automated system may be configured to perform one or more of thefollowing functions: (a) moving consumables such as plates into, within,and out of the detection subsystem, (b) moving consumables between othersubsystems, (c) storing the consumables, (d) sample and reagent handling(e.g., adapted to mix reagents and/or introduce reagents intoconsumables), (e) consumable shaking (e.g., for mixing reagents and/orfor increasing reaction rates), (f) consumable washing (e.g., washingplates and/or performing assay wash steps (e.g., well aspirating)), and(g) measuring ECL in a flow cell or a consumable such as a tube or aplate. The automated system may be configured to handle individual tubesplaced in racks, multiwell plates such as 96 or 384 well plates.

Methods for integrating components and modules in automated systems asdescribed herein are well-known in the art, see, e.g., Sargeant et al.,Platform Perfection, Medical Product Outsourcing, May 17, 2010.

In embodiments, the automated system is fully automated, is modular, iscomputerized, performs in vitro quantitative and qualitative tests on awide range of analytes and performs photometric assays, ion-selectiveelectrode measurements, and/or electrochemiluminescence (ECL) assays. Inembodiments, the system includes the following hardware units: a controlunit, a core unit and at least one analytical module.

In embodiments, the control unit uses a graphical user interface tocontrol all instrument functions, and is comprised of a readout device,such as a monitor, an input device(s), such as keyboard and mouse, and apersonal computer using, e.g., a Windows operating system. Inembodiments, the core unit is comprised of several components thatmanage conveyance of samples to each assigned analytical module. Theactual composition of the core unit depends on the configuration of theanalytical modules, which can be configured by one of skill in the artusing methods known in the art. In embodiments, the core unit includesat least the sampling unit and one rack rotor as main components.Conveyor line(s) and a second rack rotor are possible extensions.Several other core unit components can include the sample rackloader/unloader, a port, a barcode reader (for racks and samples), awater supply and a system interface port. In embodiments, the analyticalmodule conducts ECL assays and includes a reagent area, a measurementarea, a consumables area and a pre-clean area.

The methods of the invention may be applied to singleplex or multiplexformats where multiple assay measurements are performed on a singlesample. Multiplex measurements that can be used with the inventioninclude, but are not limited to, multiplex measurements i) that involvethe use of multiple sensors; ii) that use discrete assay domains on asurface (e.g., an array) that are distinguishable based on location onthe surface; iii) that involve the use of reagents coated on particlesthat are distinguishable based on a particle property such as size,shape, color, etc.; iv) that produce assay signals that aredistinguishable based on optical properties (e.g., absorbance oremission spectrum) and/or v) that are based on temporal properties ofassay signal (e.g., time, frequency or phase of a signal).

The invention includes methods for detecting and counting individualdetection complexes. In embodiments, the surface comprises a pluralityof binding domains, and each analyte forms a complex in a differentbinding domain of the plurality of binding domains. In embodiments, thesurface is a particle. In embodiments, the surface is a bead. Inembodiments, the surface is a plate. In embodiments, the surface is awell in a multi-well array. In embodiments, the surface comprises anelectrode. In embodiments, the electrode is a carbon ink electrode. Inembodiments, each binding domain for each analyte of the one or moreadditional analytes is on a separate surface, and the surfaces are beadsin a bead array. In embodiments, each binding domain for each analyte ofthe one or more additional analytes is on a single surface, and thebinding domains form the elements of a capture reagent array on thesurface. In embodiments, the surface comprises an electrode and thedetection step of the method comprises applying a potential to theelectrode and measuring electrochemiluminescence. In embodiments,applying a potential to the electrode generates anelectrochemiluminescence signal.

In a specific embodiment, the surface comprises a plurality of capturereagents for one or more analytes that are present in a sample, and theplurality of capture reagents are distributed across a plurality ofresolvable binding regions positioned on the surface. Under theconditions used to carry out and analyze a measurement, a “resolvablebinding region” is the minimal surface area associated with anindividual binding event that can be resolved and differentiated fromanother area in which an additional individual binding event isoccurring. Therefore, the method consists of binding one or moreanalytes to one or more capture reagents on the surface, determining thepresence or absence of the analytes, in a plurality of resolvablebinding regions on the surface, and identifying the number of resolvablebinding regions that contain an analyte of interest and/or the number ofdomains that do not contain analyte.

The resolvable binding regions can be optically interrogated, in wholeor in part, i.e., each individual resolvable binding region can beindividually optically interrogated and/or the entire surface comprisinga plurality of resolvable binding regions can be imaged and one or morepixels or groupings of pixels within that image can be mapped to anindividual resolvable binding region. A resolvable binding region mayalso be a microparticle within a plurality of microparticles. Theresolvable binding regions exhibiting changes in their optical signaturecan be identified by a conventional optical detection system. Dependingon the detected species (e.g., type of fluorescence entity, etc.) andthe operative wavelengths, optical filters designed for a particularwavelength can be employed for optical interrogation of the resolvablebinding regions. In embodiments where optical interrogation is used, thesystem can comprise more than one light source and/or a plurality offilters to adjust the wavelength and/or intensity of the light source.In some embodiments, the optical signal from a plurality of resolvablebinding regions is captured using a CCD camera. Other non-limitingexamples of camera imaging systems that can be used to capture imagesinclude charge injection devices (CIDs), complementary metal oxidesemiconductors (CMOSs) devices, scientific CMOS (sCMOS) devices, andtime delay integration (TDI) devices, as will be known to those ofordinary skill in the art. In some embodiments, a scanning mirror systemcoupled with a photodiode or photomultiplier tube (PMT) can be used forimaging.

In embodiments, the binding of each analyte to its corresponding capturereagent is performed in parallel by contacting the one or more surfaceswith a single liquid volume comprising a plurality of analytes. Inembodiments, the plurality of analytes includes the analyte and one ormore additional analytes. In embodiments, each step of the method iscarried out for each analyte in parallel. In embodiments, the method isa simultaneous multiplexed assay. Multiplexed measurement of analytes ona surface are described herein; see also, e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos.10,201,812; 7,842,246 and 6,977,722, incorporated by reference herein intheir entireties.

In a specific embodiment, the methods of the invention can be used in amultiplexed format by binding a plurality of different analytes to aplurality of capture reagents for those analytes, the capture analytesbeing immobilized on coded bead, such that the coding identifies thecapture reagent (and analyte target) for a specific bead. The method mayfurther comprise counting the number of beads that have a bound analyte(using the detection approaches described herein).

Alternatively or additionally, the capture reagents can be bound,directly or indirectly, to different discrete binding domains on one ormore solid phases, e.g., as in a binding array wherein the bindingdomains are individual array elements, or in a set of beads wherein thebinding domains are the individual beads, such that discrete assaysignals are generated on and measured from each binding domain. Ifcapture reagents for different analytes are immobilized in differentbinding domains, the different analytes bound to those domains can bemeasured independently. In one example of such an embodiment, thebinding domains are prepared by immobilizing, on one or more surfaces,discrete domains of capture reagents that bind analytes of interest.Optionally, the surface(s) may define, in part, one or more boundariesof a container (e.g., a flow cell, well, cuvette, etc.) which holds thesample or through which the sample is passed. In a preferred embodiment,individual binding domains are formed on electrodes for use inelectrochemical or electrochemiluminescence assays. Multiplexedmeasurement of analytes on a surface comprising a plurality of bindingdomains using electrochemiluminescence has been used in the Meso ScaleDiagnostics, LLC, MULTI-ARRAY® and SECTOR® Imager line of products (see,e.g., U.S. Pat. Nos. 10,201,812; 7,842,246 and 6,977,722, incorporatedherein by reference in their entireties).

Still further, the capture reagents can be bound, directly orindirectly, to an electrode surface, which optionally includes differentdiscrete binding domains, as described above. The electrode surface canbe a component of a multi-well plate and/or a flow cell. Electrodes cancomprise a conductive material, e.g., a metal such as gold, silver,platinum, nickel, steel, iridium, copper, aluminum, a conductive allow,or the like. They may also include oxide coated metals, e.g., aluminumoxide coated aluminum. The electrode can include working and counterelectrodes which can be made of the same or different materials, e.g., ametal counter electrode and carbon working electrode. In one specificembodiment, electrodes comprise carbon-based materials such as carbon,carbon black, graphitic carbon, carbon nanotubes, carbon fibrils,graphite, graphene, carbon fibers and mixtures thereof. In oneembodiment, the electrodes comprise elemental carbon, e.g., graphitic,carbon black, carbon nanotubes, etc. Advantageously, they may includeconducting carbon-polymer composites, conducting particles dispersed ina matrix (e.g. carbon inks, carbon pastes, metal inks, graphene inks),and/or conducting polymers. One specific embodiment of the invention isan assay module, preferably a multi-well plate, having electrodes (e.g.,working and/or counter electrodes) that comprise carbon, e.g., carbonlayers, and/or screen-printed layers of carbon inks.

In embodiments, each binding domain comprises a targeting reagentcomplement capable of binding to a targeting reagent complement and eachanchoring reagent and capture reagent comprise a supplemental linkingreagent capable of binding to a linking reagent, and the method furthercomprises immobilizing a capture reagent and anchoring agent in eachbinding domain by: (1) binding the capture and anchoring reagent throughthe supplemental linking reagent to a targeting reagent complementconnected to the linking reagent; and (2) binding the product of step(1) to the binding domain comprising the targeting reagent complement,wherein (i) each binding domain comprises a different targeting reagentcomplement, and (ii) each targeting reagent complement selectively bindsto one of the targeting reagents.

Accordingly, in embodiments, the surface comprises the targeting reagentcomplement; the targeting reagent is connected to the linking reagent;and each of the capture reagent and anchoring reagent comprises thesupplemental linking reagent. Thus, in embodiments, the targetingreagent complement on the surface binds to the targeting reagent, whichis connected to the linking reagent, which binds to the supplementallinking reagent on the capture reagent and the anchoring reagent.

In embodiments, the linking reagent has more than one binding site forsupplemental linking reagents, and the immobilization of the capturereagent and anchoring reagent further comprises: binding the capture andanchoring reagent through the supplemental linking reagent to atargeting reagent connected to the linking reagent; and binding theproduct of to the binding domain comprising the targeting reagentcomplement, wherein, (i) each binding domain comprises a differenttargeting reagent complement, and (ii) each targeting reagent complementselectively binds to one of the targeting reagents. For example, in thecase where the targeting agent is an oligonucleotide, the linkingreagent is streptavidin and the supplemental linking agent is biotin, abiotin-labeled oligonucleotide can be bound to a first of the fourbiotin binding sites of a streptavidin to form the targeting reagentconnected to a linking reagent. A biotin-labeled capture reagent (i.e.,a capture reagent linked to the supplemental linking agent) can thenbind to a remaining biotin binding site on the streptavidin to connectthe targeting agent to the capture reagent.

Exemplary targeting reagents and targeting reagent complements aredescribed herein. In embodiments, the targeting reagent and targetingreagent complement are two members of a binding partner pair selectedfrom avidin-biotin, streptavidin-biotin, antibody-hapten,antibody-antigen, antibody-epitope tag, nucleic acid-complementarynucleic acid, aptamer-aptamer target, and receptor-ligand. Inembodiments, the targeting reagent is biotin and the targeting reagentcomplement is streptavidin. In embodiments, the linking reagent andsupplemental linking reagent pair is a different binding partner pairthan the targeting reagent and targeting reagent complement pair. Inembodiments, the linking reagent is avidin or streptavidin, and thesupplemental linking reagent is biotin. In embodiments, the targetingreagent and targeting reagent complement are complementaryoligonucleotides.

In embodiments, the methods of the invention are applied to singleplexor multiplex formats where multiple assay measurements are performed ona single sample. Multiplex measurements that can be used with theinvention include, but are not limited to, multiplex measurements i)that involve the use of multiple sensors; ii) that use discrete assaydomains on a surface (e.g., an array) that are distinguishable based onlocation on the surface; iii) that involve the use of reagents coated onparticles that are distinguishable based on a particle property such assize, shape, color, etc.; iv) that produce assay signals that aredistinguishable based on optical properties (e.g., absorbance oremission spectrum) or v) that are based on temporal properties of assaysignal (e.g., time, frequency or phase of a signal). Exemplary assayformats include V-PLEX(www.mesoscale.com/en/products_and_services/assay_kits/v-plex) andU-PLEX(www.mesoscale.com/en/products_and_services/assay_kits/u-plex_gateway,and U.S. Pat. Nos. 10,201,812 and 10,189,023, each of which isincorporated herein by reference in its entirety). Additionalultrasensitive assay formats include those disclosed in U.S. ProvisionalAppl. No. 62/812,928, filed Mar. 1, 2019, and U.S. Provisional Appl. No.62/866,512, filed Jun. 25, 2019, each of which is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

Exemplary plate readers include the MESO SECTOR S 600(www.mesoscale.com/en/products_and_services/instrumentation/sector_s_600)and the MESO QUICKPLEX SQ 120(www.mesoscale.com/en/products_and_services/instrumentation/quickplex_sq_120),both available from Meso Scale Diagnostics, LLC., and the plate readersdescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,977,722 and U.S. Provisional Patent Appl.No. 62/874,828, Titled: “Assay Apparatuses, Methods and Reagents” byKrivoy et al., Attorney Docket No. MSD-011.PROV filed Jul. 16, 2019,each of which is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

The user interface methodology described above may also be incorporatedinto a user interface of an assay system. The assay system that isdescribed below allows a user to perform assays via the user interface.The following describes an example of a user interface incorporated intothe assay system for assay method. The term “system software” or“system” referred to below in describing the functions of the assaysystem and its user interface refer to software that implements theassay system. The user interface is able to display or visualize a pathof a workflow and/or menu items.

The following terminologies are used in describing the assay system andits user interface workflow.

Advanced Context Menu—A menu of options dependent on the particularcontext (such as current screen, sub-step, and the state of the screen)for advanced users.

Assay Method—The method by which an assay is performed, including butnot limited to: 1. Instrument protocol that should be executed and theparameters for execution of that protocol; 2. Test plate layouts; 3.Calibrator titration scheme such as dilution factors; 4. Control layout;and 5. Sample replicate schemes.

Audit Log—A continuous record of events both automated anduser-initiated that happened in the system that may impact the resultsgenerated. This record is used to trace issues and to ensure properoperations in controlled environments. The Audit Log is persistent andimmutable. It includes a subset of the information in the InstrumentLog.

Compatible Protocols—Protocols are compatible if they have the samebasic outline and steps, although dilution ratios, times of incubation,washing, and others, may vary between them. Protocols are consideredcompatible if they can run on an automated platform together during thesame run.

Completed Run—A run that has been aborted, completed with flag(s), orcompleted successfully.

CV—Coefficient of Variation.

Database Clean—Resets the entire database, restoring it to the state itwas in at system installation.

ECL—Electrochemiluminescence. A proprietary format for detectingmolecules of biological interest.

Existing Run—A run that has been planned, aborted, completed withflag(s), or completed successfully.

Global Product Data (GPD)—Data that is for a specific item identifiedwith a GPI. While the same data can be used for multiple items, the GPIallows for matching of data to one specific item. The GPD may compriseinformation used to identify at least one element including (i) an assayconsumable, (ii) one or more test sites within the consumable, (iii) areagent and/or sample that has been or will be used in the consumable,or (iv) combinations thereof. Further, the GPD can be used todistinguish a first test site within the consumable from a differenttest site within the consumable. The GPD can comprise lot identificationinformation, lot specific analysis parameters, manufacturing processinformation, raw materials information, expiration date, calibrationdata, threshold information, the location of individual assay reagentsand/or samples within one or more test sites of the assay consumable,Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) information, or combinations thereof,The GPD can also comprise one or more analytical tools that can beapplied by the system to analyze data generated during and/or after theconduct of an assay, assay system maintenance information,system-consumable promotional information, system and/or consumabletechnical support information, or combinations thereof. In addition, GPDincludes consumable identification and/or configuration information, andone or more steps of an assay protocol that can be applied by the systemin the conduct of an assay using the consumable.

Test sites may also be referred to as spots. Spot layouts may refer toarrays of test sites, for example, within a single well of a test plateor assay plate.

Global Product Identifier (GPI)—A system/instrument/consumablevendor-specified, unique identifier for an individual specific productsuch as an assay consumable. The identifier can be any number ofconfigurations. In the case of consumables such as assay plates, theidentifier may be an associated manufacturing barcode.

Types of GPI and GPD are known, e.g., see U.S. Pat. No. 8,770,471,International Patent Appl. Pub. No. WO 2011/017082, and U.S. PatentAppl. Pub. No. 2006/199196.

Instrument Log—A detailed log file that records all actions carried outby the system and any failures or error states that have occurred duringa run. The Instrument Log is a rolling circular log with storedinformation, limited by the amount of memory space allocated to this logfile; for instance, older entries are overwritten over time.

Instrument Software—Software that controls the instrument hardware

LED—Light-emitting diode. A light source.

Normal State—Instrument is considered to be in a normal state if thesoftware is functioning without any error or warning. Instrument isreturned to normal state once error state is recovered and/or warningmessage is acknowledged.

Run—A run includes 0 or more named samples and 1 or more assay methodsand tests the samples according to the information described in theassay methods.

Run Owner—User who created the run.

Sample—A generic term encompassing materials to be analyzed includingCalibrators, Controls, Blanks, and Unknowns.

Sample ID—The unique identifier for each sample.

Sample Layout—The sample locations and sample IDs on a plate.

Sample Type—The functional type of a sample such as Calibrator, Control,Blank, or Unknown.

Spot Layout—The analyte locations and names in a well on a plate.

Step—One of a sequence of separate, consecutive stages in theprogression towards a goal. Steps constitute broad stages that mayconsist of multiple sub-steps.

Sub-step—One of a sequence of separate, consecutive stages in theprogression towards completion of a step. Sub-steps constitute focusedactivities within a step.

Unexpected Barcode—A barcode that is different than the one expected. Aconsumable may also be considered to have an “unexpected barcode” if nobarcode is read.

User Interface (UI)—The software interface that the user of theinstrument interacts with to control and monitor the system.

UI Warning Event—Any attention messages that require a user response.The user should fix the error and/or acknowledge the message beforeproceeding. For example, a UI Warning Event may be that the instrumentis in a “Not Ready” state.

System Events Log—A persisted log of events that occurred in thesoftware that are not instrument related.

FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating a first user login user interfacefor an assay system in one embodiment. 402, system software for assaymethod may check that the End User License Agreement (EULA) associatedwith the assay system has been accepted every time it starts. When theuser first starts the system software, the EULA is presented. A recordof the username and date and time is created when the user accepts theagreement. If the user has not previously accepted the agreement, at404, EULA is displayed and allows the user to accept the agreement. At406, if the user does not accept the agreement, the software closes. At408, a splash screen is displayed that contains: System softwarebranding, Copyright, Legal notice, Software Version. The initial loginscreen requests the username at 410. In one embodiment, the systemsoftware may present the past usernames used to login on the system tominimize error due to typing the username. The user is allowed to alsoenter anew username that has not previously been used to login. Afterselecting (or receiving) the username at 412 the software prompts theuser to enter the password for the username at 414. In one embodiment,the system software may also use biometric ways such as facialrecognition, voice, and/or fingerprint, to login or to verify login. Inanother embodiment, the system software may use a badge keycard thatcontains information that can be scanned or read via near fieldcommunication. At 416, the system software receives entered password.Once the username and password have been entered, the system softwareauthenticates the user at 418. If the user is authenticatedsuccessfully, the user interface proceeds to a start screen at 420.Otherwise, the system software via the user interface prompts the userto retry. The system software in one embodiment next requires all usersto login to access the software. In one embodiment, authentication maybe performed through the Microsoft Windows® authentication facility andmay be configured to authenticate through Active Directory. In thisfirst user interface display, the username and password prompt may bedisplayed in one orientation, for example, horizontally on a horizontalwheel graphical element 422.

FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating a method of displaying a startuser interface screen display in one embodiment. This display screenincludes lists of menu items in two different visual orientations, forexample, horizontal and vertical. Thus, for example, a more generalcategory of menu items is displayed on a horizontal wheel 502 and thesubmenu items are displayed on a vertical wheel 504. For instance, theSTART option 506, which has been selected from the login user (FIG. 4)is presented on the horizontal wheel 502. The second level of optionsstemming from the START option 406 is presented on the vertical wheel504. In this example assay method, the start screen is the initialsoftware screen displayed to the user. The workflows that a user canperform are listed as options (sub options) on a vertical wheel they canselected from. In this assay method example, less common and advancedworkflows may be grouped under an advanced menu. In this example assaymethod, the options for the workflows for the system include: Create anew run 508, when the user selects the create new run workflow 510 theuser can create a run from scratch or base it on a previously definedrun 512; Continue a run that was previously planned or started 514, whenthe user selects to continue a previously planned or started run 516,the software automatically resumes 518 from the last step the usercompleted in the run; View the results of a completed run 520, when theuser selects to view a completed run 522, the software brings the userto the review screen 524. After the user selects any of the options fromthe vertical wheel 504, the options on the vertical wheel are added to anew horizontal wheel above the screen. This horizontal wheel allows theuser to change their selection. For example, after selecting “CreateNew” the options for Planned and Completed runs are moved to thehorizontal wheel allowing the user to change their mind.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a workflow of a define assay methodscreen in one embodiment. In this example, the software requires anAssay Method in order to process the samples being considered. Theprocessing shown in this screen may be performed responsive to theDEFINE option (FIG. 5, 512) being executed. The assay method defines:The assays on the plate; The plate layout; Number of calibrators,controls, and max number of samples; Control, Calibrator, and sampledilutions; Number of replicates for controls, calibrators, and samples;The instrument protocol (incubation time, perform blocker, and/orothers). A default Assay Method is provided for every kit, the systemsoftware allows the user to create a custom Assay Method based on adefault. In one embodiment, the Assay Method is distributed in theGlobal Product Data (GPD) file. The GPD contains, for example: Productbarcode; Assays; Placement of assays in the well; Lot identification forKit, Plate, Antibodies, Calibrators, Controls; Measured concentrationof: Calibrators, Controls; Instrument instructions on how to process theproduct; and Recommended plate layout.

FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a user interface workflow for selectingassay method in one embodiment. This user interface workflow may followa selection or execution of defining assay method, for instance,selected or executed as an option in the workflow shown in FIG. 6.Options under Define Assay Method may include Assay Method selectionoption, Samples option and Confirm option, which are shown in horizontalorientation, for example, on a horizontal wheel graphical element 702.The selected Assay Method option may be highlighted and/or centered onthat horizontal wheel over other unselected options. The sub-leveloptions below the Assay Method option may be displayed in verticalorientation, for example, on a vertical wheel graphical element 704. Inthis example, there may be 3 ways the user can select an Assay Method:a) Selecting from recent Assay Methods used on the system sorted byreverse chronological order; and b) Selecting from all available AssayMethods installed on the system. In this screen the UI uses multiplewheels, and each wheel filters the results of the following wheel untilthe final wheel contains just the results: c) Searching for an AssayMethod installed on the system, which can be done using free textsearch.

When the user selects one of the sub-level options, the sub-leveloptions move into the horizontal wheel to allow the user to change theirAssay Method selection model. After the user makes the initial selectionof the assay method, the user is allowed to select whether the user onlywants to run a single assay method or multiple assay methods: Singleassay method, wherein all Mesoscale Diagnostics test plates in the runuse the same assay method; Multiple assay method, wherein there are atleast one Mesoscale Diagnostics test plate per assay method in the run.

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for defining samples in one embodiment. Based on selecting“Define Samples” option, that option is shown in horizontal orientation,for example, on a horizontal wheel graphical element 802, which may bestacked under the Define option, its parent menu item. The sub-level ofoptions associated with the “Define Samples” options are displayedvertically, for example, on a vertical wheel graphical element 804.

In the Define samples screen the user interface allows the user toselect to import samples or manually define the samples. These optionsmove to the horizontal wheel after the user selects an option. When theuser selects to import samples from a file, the software via the userinterface presents the sample files the user can use in a verticalwheel. The system can alternatively import from a Laboratory InformationSystem or a Laboratory Information Management System.

The system can also import from a sample management system. When theuser selects to manually define samples, the user may define the numberof samples to run. The software automatically assigns samples IDs.

FIG. 9 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for confirming a run definition in one embodiment. Based onselecting “Confirm Run Definition” option, a submenu item of “Define”option, the “Confirm Run Definition” option is displayed on a horizontalwheel graphical element, for example, stacked below its parent menuitem, “Define” option. After the user has defined the run in theprevious steps, the system provides a summary of the run for the user toreview and confirm. The following information is displayed to the user:The number of samples in the run. The user may also select the number ofsamples to view the sample identifiers (IDs), the number of MesoscaleDiagnostics plates in the run, the layout of the plates, and the name ofthe run. The system gives a default name to the run and allows the userto change it. Once the user has confirmed the run, the system promptsthe user requesting whether the user wants to continue to execute therun or return to the Start Goal.

FIG. 10 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for notifying the user of the accomplished tasks in oneembodiment. The system may walk the user through accomplishing tasks viathe user interface in a wizard (an automated help feature). The majorlogical steps may be broken down into Goals. In this example, the systemhas three major goals in the wizard: Start, wherein the user begins andselects what the user wants to do in the system; Define, wherein afterthe user picks what the user wants to do, the wizard walks the user viathe user interface through defining any information needed; and Execute,wherein the system walks the user through execution of the task the userhas selected.

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for execute/collect option in one embodiment. In this collectscreen the system creates a list of items that the user needs tocollects in order to perform the run. Each item has to be marked ascollected before proceeding. The system also allows the user to printthis list or use a tablet computer for collection. For each item to becollected the item may optionally be scanned so the system can check itis the correct item, expiration date, lot information. For instance, thesystem may request bar code scans on items. This is done using thebarcode (GPI) to retrieve the GPD.

FIG. 12 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for execute/prepare option in one embodiment. In this preparescreen, the system presents a list of steps needed to prepare items thatwere collected in a wheel. For each step in the wheel the systempresents the detailed instructions for that prepare step when it isselected. The detailed prepare step may include: Text that describes theactions to be taken; Images that visually indicate the actions; Videothat demonstrates the actions; and Web content, as in Web pages, whichprovide further details or context about the actions. The user isprompted to indicate that all the prepare steps have been completedbefore proceeding to the next step. The user may also print the preparesteps or complete them using the tablet.

FIG. 13 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for execute/load option in one embodiment. In this load screenthe system displays a list of the items to load onto the instrument in awheel format. For each item the system displays graphically where theitem should be loaded. The system provides a graphical indication ofwhether the item was loaded or is empty. The system checks whether allthe items have been loaded before proceeding to the next screen.

FIG. 14 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for execute/run option in one embodiment. This run screenallows the user to indicate to the system to start the run, for example,via a run button UI control. This screen also allows the user toregister other users for system update messages. The updates may bedistributed through for example, electronic mail (email), text such asshort message service (SMS), social network applications and/or blogs,and/or others. Once the user initiates the run, the system transitionsto present a timer of the estimated time to completion. In oneembodiment, there are 3 modes to the timer; 1) Estimated time in ananalog watch format; 2) Estimated time in a digital watch format; and 3)A live camera feed of the instrument. The user may also request the runto stop through the advanced context menu.

FIG. 15 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for execute/unload option in one embodiment. After a runcompletes, the system transitions to this unload screen. At the unloadscreen a list of steps is presented to unload the system in a wheel. Foreach item the system displays graphically where the item should beunloaded. The system provides a graphical indication of whether the itemis loaded or is unloaded. The user needs to unload all the items beforeproceeding to the next screen.

FIG. 16 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for execute/review option in one embodiment. At the reviewscreen, the system presents the results of the run. The results are alsoautomatically exported in: File format; Transmitted to LIMS/LIS system;and Email. The results are presented and can be viewed: a) Graphicallyas a plate representation. ECL or Calculated Concentration is displayedusing a luminosity scale, where a dark/black color indicates a lowresult and a bright color indicates a high result. A scale is presentedto annotate the color luminosity to number; b) The results are alsoavailable as a table. This table can be exported through File format;Transmitted to LIMS/LIS system; and/or Email. The system records anyunusual operations or results in a table, for instance, if thetemperature during the run was not in the specified range. After theuser is done reviewing the run data, the user may go to the Start goalto begin another run or view results.

FIG. 17 is a flow diagram illustrating a workflow of a user interfacedisplayed for execute/review option in one embodiment. In oneembodiment, the system categorizes tasks the user may do into majorworkflows and advanced workflows. Major workflows are those the userwill routinely perform and are optimized for ease of execution. Themajor workflows are represented in the wizard Goals and steps. Advancedworkflows are present in the advance context menu and representworkflows that are not routinely done or restricted to configurationmanager. The user opens the advanced context menu by clicking on theMesoscale Diagnostics Globe. The advanced context menu items arecontained in a vertical wheel with 3 main groups: Functions related tothe current screen—context sensitive items, which change depending onthe active screen; Modules that can be switched to; and Functions thatare applicable across all modules, for instance login and logout of thesoftware. In this screen, the selected option, advanced menu isdisplayed horizontally on a horizontal graphical wheel, while thesub-options of the advanced menu are shown vertically on a verticalgraphical wheel.

In one embodiment, the graphical user interface in one embodimentmaximizes black space by making the background black, thereby minimizingcoloring of pixels in the user interface display (e.g., display screen),save storage and improve speed of presentation. FIG. 20 is an examplescreen shot of a screen displaying graphical wheel/slider, whichmaximizes screen black space, in one embodiment.

As described above, the user interface in the present disclosure,whether used in an assay system or another system, is capable ofpresenting the complete trail on a single screen of a user interfacedisplay, for example, on a graphical wheel, and allowing the user toselect any item on any level to go back from the current path ofselected items, for example, instead of having to enter or type a seriesof back buttons on a keyboard or another input device. The userinterface allows for past decisions to be visible, for example, primarydecision and last n recent decisions (the history of decision may bevisible via scrolling through the graphical wheel or another graphicalelement such as a graphical slider).

In one embodiment, the graphical user interface minimizes the number ofmenu choices the user needs to make in order to navigate through theassay system. For instance, the order in which the menu choices arepresented may minimize the number of user options.

In one embodiment, by minimizing options or choices to present to theuser and receive input from those choices, computer processing time maybe improved. The user interface leads the user through the next step inthe application, while providing minimal number of choices the userneeds to make.

In other embodiments, the certain features described herein can be usedto divide one or more problems into different segments for multipleusers to solve (e.g., sequentially or in parallel) collaboratively. Inthis regard, a processor can be adapted to receive one or more benchmarkinputs (e.g., inputs that provide information that provide support for,or a solution to, a larger problem, experiment, assay, or the like. Thebenchmark inputs can be aggregated, which can be relied on collectivelyto collaboratively solve the problem, carry out the experiment, etc.Such inputs can be based on one or more of the following: (a) a module;(b) a problem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) a device; (d) a physicallocation; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g) equipment. Further, aprocessor can be adapted to notify or the more users, accounts, orteams, of the results derived from one or more of received benchmarkinputs. In one example, (e.g., performing an assay), this can include anotification to a researcher responsible for carrying out an experimentthat a first user completed the design of an assay experiment (thusnotifying the researcher that the experiment is ready to be performed),and another notification back to the first user that the researchercompleted carrying out the experiment after the experiment is complete(e.g., so that the first user can review the results of the experiment).Moreover, the processor can be adapted to supply an output in responseto a received response, such that the output can be adapted to betransmitted to a device communicatively connected to the processor(i.e., interfaced with components, devices, etc. of the physical world)for directing the device to perform certain actions (e.g., a physicalmovement or undergo a physical transformation). In certain embodiments,the processor causes a response to these components in the physicalworld as a step within the broader process of dividing one or moreproblems into different segments for multiple users to solve asdescribed above. Additionally, certain aspects of these (and otherprocesses described throughout) can be controlled by the processorthough a permissions command. The permissions command can be used tomanage one or more of user's and team's levels of access, security, orcontrol. Those permissions can be based on various levels, including oneor more of a role, user, team, account, instrument, equipment, ordevice. In this regard, a sophisticated set of permissions can becreated to establish multiple levels of security for multipleapplications so that access, control, and security can be tightlymaintained and controlled in a highly versatile fashion.

The following discussion provides additional embodiments andimplementations of the system as presented herein. The user interfacesystems discussed above may be broadly applicable to a variety ofapplications, including manufacturing environments, testingenvironments, instrumentation environments, experimental environments,and others. In a series of embodiments, the user interface systemsdiscussed above may be employed to provide a user interface into acomprehensive bioinstrumentation system encompassing software, hardware,testing equipment, and all additional required features. The followingdiscusses such a comprehensive bioinstrumentation system. In particular,the following discusses an embodiment of the systems described herein asa cloud-based platform. The embodiments discussed below, e.g., withrespect to FIGS. 21-50 may also be implemented via alternative networkedhardware and software platforms.

The description herein is made with reference to the figures forpurposes of convenience only; it is not restrictive as to the scope ofembodiments hereof. The ensuing description is adaptable to a variety ofanalytical applications, including without limitation, bioanalyticalapplications, chemical analytical applications, radiological analyticalapplications, and the like.

The components shown may include computer-implemented components, forinstance, implemented and/or run on one or more hardware processors, orcoupled with one or more hardware processors. One or more hardwareprocessors, for example, may include components such as programmablelogic devices, microcontrollers, memory devices, and/or other hardwarecomponents, which may be configured to perform respective tasksdescribed in the present disclosure. Processors and cloud-basedprocessing systems as disclosed in FIGS. 21-50 may be examples ofprocessor 1110. Coupled memory devices may be configured to selectivelystore instructions executable by one or more hardware processors. Memorydevices and cloud-based storage systems as disclosed in FIGS. 21-50 maybe examples of storage device 1120. Examples of a processor may include,but are not limited to, a central processing unit (CPU), a graphicsprocessing unit (GPU), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), anapplication specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a cloud based processingunit, another suitable processing component or device, or one or morecombinations thereof.

FIG. 21 is an embodiment of a cloud-based system providing seamlessintegration of other systems, computers, and instruments, e.g.bioinstruments, supporting and optimizing users doing analytical work,e.g., bioanalytical work. 21100 is the system boundary around the othersystems, computers, and instruments either wholly or partly makes up theanalytical computing system 21100, wherein, the operating system on eachcomputer and/or instrument, in whole or part, includes the analyticalcomputing system 21100 can include, e.g., Windows™, UNIX, Linux, MacOS™,iOS™, Android™, and/or any other commercial, open-source, and/orspecial-purpose operating system. At 21101 is an analytical userenvironment including one or more servers, desktop computers, laptopcomputers, tablet, and/or mobile devices of which one or more of samecan be used in system 21100. One or more analytical user environments21101 can use the analytical system 21100. At 21102 is a supportprovider environment including one or more servers, desktop computers,laptop computers, tablet, and/or mobile devices of which one or more ofsame can be used in system 21100 supporting instruments, consumables,and/or software used by analytical users in analytical user environment21101. There can be one or more support provider environments at 21102using the analytical computing system 21100. At 21103 is a consumableprovider environment including one or more servers, desktop computers,laptop computers, tablet, and/or mobile devices of which one or more ofsame can be used in analytical computing system 21100 for providingconsumables to be used by users in analytical user environment 2001,optionally in conjunction with instrumentation including instrumentationenvironment 21106. There can be one or more consumable providerenvironments at 103 using the analytical computing system 21100.

At 21105 is an analytical instrumentation provider environment for aprovider of instrumentation that can be used in instrumentationenvironment 21106 and that includes one or more servers, desktopcomputers, laptop computers, tablet, and/or mobile devices of which oneor more of same can be used in analytical computing system 21100 forproviding, e.g., selling or otherwise transferring instruments to beused by users in analytical user environment 21101. There can be one ormore instrumentation provider environments at 21105 using the analyticalcomputing system 21100. At 21104 is an analytical computing systemprovider environment for the provider of analytical computing system21100, which includes one or more servers, desktop computers, laptopcomputers, tablet, and/or mobile devices of which one or more same canbe used in system 211000 to manage the business interaction withanalytical computing system 21100 to be used by analytical users inanalytical user environment 2001. Each of the “providers” associatedwith the environments at 21102, 21103, 21104, and 21105 can include oneor more entities, including without limitation, a multiplicity ofindependent businesses, a single independent business, a combination ofdifferent independent businesses, or one or more businesses within anyone of the “providers” herein. At 21106 is an instrumentationenvironment including one or more instruments, each with at least onecomputer that in one practice can be at least partially used byanalytical computing system 21100 to run tests on samples for users inan analytical user environment 21101. At 21107 is a cloud platformleveraged to connect, e.g., bi-directionally connect, through computers,networking, and software some or all of the computers in analyticalcomputing system 21100 having in one practice, a common computing,software services, and data architecture such that data can be collectedand shared by any computer having associated software of the analyticalcomputing system 21100, wherever a particular computer with associatedsoftware in analytical computing system 21100 is located throughout theworld, in a secure manner, wherein cloud platform 21107, in thepreferred embodiment, is hosted by a public-cloud provider providing ashared computing environment, for example, Amazon™ Web Services, Google™Cloud, Microsoft™ Azure, or others. In other embodiments, the cloudplatform 21107 can be hosted by the analytical computing system providerat 21104; or it can be self-hosted by an analytical user environmentbeing a user of the analytical computing system 21100; or it can behosted by a private-cloud provider providing a dedicated computingenvironment, for example, Oracle™ Cloud, IBM™ Cloud, Rackspace, orothers; or it can be hosted on some combination of public-cloud,private-cloud, self-hosted, and hosted by the analytical computingsystem provider 21104. All communication with cloud platform 21107 canbe done through the preferred embodiment over a secure communicationprotocol, such as without limitation https, to encrypt all communicationbetween sender and receiver; but an unsecure communication protocol,such as without limitation Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS),can be used as well using optionally in either the secured or unsecuredcase connected technologies, such as Ethernet for local area network(LAN), metropolitan area network (MAN), and/or wide area network (WAN)configurations, and/or unconnected technologies, such as WIFI,Bluetooth, and/or other like technologies for a distributed LAN.Additionally, analytical computing system 21100 can be wholly deployedon one computer such that all operations of analytical computing system21100 occur on that computer with the only external communicationoccurring between computers and associated software running outside ofanalytical computing system 21100.

FIG. 22. is an embodiment of a cloud-based system as shown in FIG. 21that provides seamless integration of other systems, computers, andinstruments supporting and optimizing users doing analytical work 21100depicts the boundary of the analytical computing system that encompassesother systems, computers, and instruments that include either wholly orpartly the system bounded by 21100. At 21101 is an analytical userenvironment including one or more servers, desktop computers, laptopcomputers, tablets, and/or mobile devices of which one or more of samecan be used in analytical computing system 21100. Administratorcomputer(s) 22202 includes one or more computers with software used bysystem administrators to manage the use of system 21100 by users inanalytical user environment 21101 through services and datastorage/retrieval provided by the cloud platform 22223. Analytical usercomputers 22203 includes one or more computers with software used toperform analytical tasks by users in an analytical user environment at21101 through services and data storage/retrieval provided by the cloudplatform 22223. Data integration computers 22204 includes one or morecomputers with software used to integrate, e.g., bi-directionallyintegrate, other business systems 22224 in analytical user environment21101 with the analytical computing system 21100 providing services forthe analytical user business systems 22224 through services and datastorage/retrieval provided by cloud platform 22223. Analytical userbusiness system 22224 can be hosted internally, externally, and/or somecombination of internally and externally to analytical user environment21101 and can include one or more computer systems optionally withsoftware, examples being laboratory information systems (LIMS), dataanalysis applications, data visualization applications, data reportingapplications, business productivity applications, relational and/ornon-relational databases, file servers, and/or any other systemsproviding access to the data of the analytical computing system 21100 tousers directly using the analytical computing system 21100, to users notdirectly using the analytical computing system 21100, and/or to one ormore other computer systems included with the business system 22224 notdirectly interfacing with the analytical computing system 21100.

Support provider environment 21102 is a support provider for users ofanalytical computing system 21100, users of consumables from aconsumable provider, and/or instrumentation in instrumentationenvironment 21106 including one or more servers, desktop computers,laptop computers, tablets, and/or mobile devices of which one or more ofsame can be used in the analytical computing system 21100 supportinginstruments, consumables, and/or software used by analytical users inthe analytical user environment 21101.

Support user computer 22206 includes one or more computers with softwareprovided to users associated with a support provider environment 21102that, among other things, can monitor, manage, and/or report on activityon the analytical computing system 21100 through services and datastorage/retrieval provided by the cloud platform 22223; and support dataintegration computer 22207 includes one or more computers with softwareand/or firmware used to integrate other support business systems 22208in support provider environment 21102 with analytical computing system21100 providing services for support business systems 22208 throughservices and data storage/retrieval provided by the cloud platform22223. Support business systems 22208 can be hosted internally,externally, and/or by some combination of internally and externally tosupport provider environment 21102 and can include one or more computersystems optionally with software, examples being customer relationshipmanagement, enterprise data systems, data analysis applications, datavisualization applications, data reporting applications, businessproductivity applications, relational and/or non-relational databases,file servers, and/or any other systems providing access to the data ofanalytical computing system 21100 to users directly using the supportuser computer(s) 22206, to users not directly using the support usercomputer(s) 22206, and/or one or more other computer systems includedwith support business system 22208 not directly interfacing with theanalytical computing system 21100.

Consumable provider environment 21103 is a consumable providerenvironment including one or more servers, desktop computers, laptopcomputers, tablets, and/or mobile devices of which one or more of samecan be used in analytical computing system 21100 for a provider ofconsumables to users in analytical user environment 21101, which can beoptionally used in conjunction with instrumentation in instrumentationenvironment 21106 for providing consumables to users in analytical userenvironment 21101 to optionally be used with instruments ininstrumentation environment 21106. Consumable information uploadcomputer 22210 includes one or more computers with software used todeliver consumable information regarding provided consumables fromconsumable provider business systems 22211 to analytical computingsystem 21100 through services and data storage provided by cloudplatform 22223. Consumable information, as used herein, may include, butis not limited to, global product data (GPD). Consumable providerbusiness system 22211 can be hosted internally, externally, and/or bysome combination of internally and externally to consumable providerenvironment 21103 and can include one or more computer systemsoptionally with software, examples being customer relationshipmanagement, enterprise data systems, data reporting applications,business productivity applications, relational and/or non-relationaldatabases, file servers, and/or any other systems supporting businessoperations for the consumable provider to support delivery of consumableinformation to the analytical computing system 21100 or which is notused at all in the delivery of consumable information to the analyticalcomputing system 21100.

Analytical computing system provider environment 21104 is the analyticalcomputing system provider environment for the provider of analyticalcomputing system 21100 including of one or more servers, desktopcomputers, laptop computers, tablets, and/or mobile devices of which oneor more of same can be used in the analytical computing system 21100 forproviding analytical computing system 21100 to users in analytical userenvironment 21101 and instrumentation in instrumentation environment21106, as well as for various providers at 21102, 21103, and 21105,wherein, account information upload computer(s) 22213 includes one ormore computers with software used to prepare and control the use ofanalytical computing system 21100 by users in analytical userenvironment 21101 and instrumentation in instrumentation environment21106 through services and data storage provided by cloud platform22223. Computing system provider business system 22214 can be hostedinternally, externally, and/or some combination of internally andexternally to analytical computing system provider environment 21104 andcan include one or more computer systems optionally with software,examples being customer relationship management, enterprise datasystems, data reporting applications, business productivityapplications, relational and/or non-relational databases, file servers,and/or any other systems supporting business operations for theanalytical computing system provider to support preparing andcontrolling the use of analytical computing system 21100, or not used atall in preparing and controlling the use of the analytical computingsystem 21100.

Instrumentation provider environment 21105 includes one or more servers,desktop computers, laptop computers, tablets, and/or mobile devices ofwhich one or more of same can be used in analytical computing system21100 for a provider of instrumentation to users in analytical userenvironment 21101 and which can optionally be used as instrumentation ininstrumentation environment 21106 for processing samples under test andoptionally with one or more consumables provided by consumables providerenvironment 21103. The instrument information upload computer(s) 22216includes one or more computers with software used to deliver instrumentinformation regarding provided instrumentation from an instrumentationprovider business system 22217 to analytical computing system 21100through services and data storage provided by the cloud platform 22223.Instrumentation provider business system 22217 can be hosted internally,externally, and/or by some combination of internally and externally toinstrumentation provider environment 21105 and can include one or morecomputer systems optionally with software, examples being customerrelationship management, enterprise data systems, data reportingapplications, business productivity applications, relational and/ornon-relational databases, file servers, and/or any other systemssupporting business operations for the instrumentation provider tosupport delivery of instrument information to the analytical computingsystem 21100, or not used at all in the delivery of instrumentinformation to the analytical computing system 21100.

Instrumentation environment 21106 including one or more instruments witheach instrument being either an individual-operation instrument 22221, acoordinated-operation instrument 22222, or a workflow-aid instrument(s)22226 provided by instrumentation provider environment 21105 which canbe leveraged by users in analytical user environment 21101 to processsamples optionally in conjunction with consumables provided byconsumable provider environment 21103 to generate data for analysis byusers in analytical user environment 21101, wherein, anindividual-operation instrument 22221 can have an individual-operationinstrument computer 22219 providing integration between theindividual-operation instrument 22221 and the analytical computingsystem 21100 through services and data storage provided by the cloudplatform 22223, as well as optionally providing operational control overthe individual-operation instrument 22221; a coordinated-operationinstrument 22222 can also have a coordinated-operation instrumentcomputer 22220 that provides integration between thecoordinated-operation instrument 22222 and the analytical computingsystem 21100 through services and data storage provided by the cloudplatform 22223, as well as optionally providing operational control overthe coordinated-operation instrument 22222; and workflow-aid instrument22226 can have a workflow-aid instrument computer 22225 that providesintegration between the workflow-aid instrument 22226 and the analyticalcomputing system 21100 through services and data storage provided by thecloud platform 22223, as well as optionally providing operationalcontrol over workflow-aid instrument 224. Examples of anindividual-operation instrument 22221 include without limitation a platereader, plate washer, plate incubator, plate shaker, plateincubator-shaker, pipetting system, or any other type of instrument usedin analytical sample testing. Coordinated-operation instrument 22222 cancombine some or all of the functions provided by one or more of theindividual-operation instruments 22221 into an integrated platformautomating execution of the individual operations ofindividual-operation instruments 22221, thereby relieving a user fromexecuting the various individual operations of individual-operationinstruments 22221. Workflow-aid instrument 22226 can provide support toa user leveraging either individual-operation instrument(s) 22221 and/orcoordinated-operation instruments 22222 to test assays on samples in theinstrumentation environment 21106 where the support includes, but is notlimited to, collecting various consumables stored at varioustemperatures potentially in different physical locations, preparingconsumables to be used in the processing of one or more assays, and/orleading a user through the overall assay steps using one or more of theindividual-operation instruments 22221. In the alternative, theconsumable provider environment analytical user app 21103 can assistwith other tests in addition to or in place of the assay tests and/orplate-based tests described herein.

Instrumentation in instrumentation environment 21106 can include zero ormore individual-operation instruments 22221 each with theircorresponding individual-operation instrument computer 22219, zero ormore coordinated-operation instruments 22222 each with theircorresponding coordinated-operation instrument computers 22220, and/orzero or more workflow-aid instruments 22224 each with theircorresponding workflow-aid instrument computers 22225. A preferredembodiment for instrumentation environment 21106 includes providing aseparate computer integrating zero or more individual-operationinstruments 22221, zero or more coordinated-operation instruments 22222,zero or more workflow-aid instruments 22224, zero or moreindividual-operation instrument computers 22219, zero or morecoordinated-operation instrument computers 22220, and zero or moreworkflow-aid instrument computers 22225 to analytical computing system21100 through services and data storage provided by cloud platform22223.

In FIG. 23 is an embodiment of system architecture for cloud platform22223 as part of the analytical computing system 21100 providing commoncomputing, software services, and data architecture such that data arecollected and shared by any computer anywhere in the world havingassociated software of the analytical computing system 21100 (FIG. 21),wherein, one or more services servers 23302 provide a scalable, robust,and high-performing computing and associated software platform tosupport services specific to the analytical computing system 21100 forretrieving, storing, transferring, and/or transforming data associatedwith the use of the analytical computing system 21100; one or moredatabase servers 23309 (e.g., including one or more team databases 23310and one or more system databases 23311) providing a scalable, robust,and high-performing computing and associated software platform for oneor more structured databases used for storing and/or retrieving dataproduced by and/or for users of the analytical computing system 21100,as well as, for storing and/or retrieving data produced and/or used bythe analytical computing system 21100 for its preparation for use aswell as through its use, wherein, the database technology can berelational in nature as e.g. SQL Server, Oracle, MySQL, Postgres,Aurora, and/or other like relational database technologies; and/or canbe non-relational in nature as e.g. Dynamo DB, Mongo DB, and/or otherlike non-relational database technologies; with one or more bulk dataservers 23315, which may include system content 23312, instrumentcontent 23313 and consumable content 23314, providing a scalable,robust, and high-performing computing and associated software platformfor storing and retrieving file-based data provided for use of theanalytical computing system 21100 and/or produced through the use of theanalytical computing system 21100. The services server(s) 23302 hasassociated with it, in one embodiment, a logical collection of services,namely: admin 23303 including a logical collection of services tosupport administration of the use of analytical computing system 21100;dashboard 23304 including a logical collection of services to supportmonitoring and control of the use of analytical computing system 21100;upload 23305 including a logical collection of services supportingupload of consumable and instrument information to analytical computingsystem 21100; system 23306 including a logical collection of servicessupporting various non-user-specific functions associated with overalluse of analytical computing system 21100; application 23307 including alogical collection of services supporting typical scientific use ofanalytical computing system 21100 by analytical users; and authenticate23308 including a logical collection of services supporting securelog-in to analytical computing system 21100 as well as log-out fromanalytical computing system 21100. In one practice, services server(s)23302 is an easily scaled computing infrastructure from one or moreservers as represented by services server(s) 23302 wherein, in apreferred embodiment, each server has deployed all logical collection ofservices 23303, 23304, 23305, 23306, 23307, and 23308 to enable a loadbalancer to equally distribute requests for services across the one ormore servers represented by services server(s) 23302 to optimize userinteraction. This load balancing technique can be effectuated, e.g., ifthe logical collection of services 23303, 23304, 23305, 23306, 23307,and 23308 are designed using a RESTful (representational state transfer)design pattern, i.e., each provided service is stateless, i.e., does notstore or hold data, and therefore any request made on the service can befulfilled by any available server on which the service deployed inservices server(s) 23302 based on demand at the time of request. Tosupport optimal deployment and operation of the logical collection ofservices 23303, 23304, 23305, 23306, 23307, and 23308 on one computer oron many computers, the preferred embodiment is for these services to bebuilt on a distributed-object platform such as, e.g., Java PlatformEnterprise Edition to be able to support cross-platform computingarchitectures, .NET Framework for Windows-only computing architectures,or other like distributed-object platform, or leveraging somecombination of one or more of these distributed-object platforms.Database Server 23310 can include one or more databases, for example,Team Database 23310 and System Database 23311. Team Database 23310 isadapted to store information, data, and/or metadata as it relates toTeams (e.g., Team name, members, permissions, etc.). System Database23111 can include files, data, and/or other information as it relatessystem functionalities. Further, Bulk Data Server 23315 can includevarious content, e.g., System Content 23312, e.g., data or contentrelating to the system's functionality, etc., Instrument content 23313,e.g., type of instrument, parameters, etc., and Consumable Content23314, e.g., type of consumable, quantities, etc.

In FIG. 24 is an embodiment of an administrator using an AdministratorComputer 24401 to run administrator app software 24402 to performadministrative functions provided by the analytical computing system21100 through services provided through the cloud platform 22223. Theadministrator app software, as discussed herein, may employ a MUI asdescribed above to facilitate user access to the functionality provided.As such, embodiments of the methodical user interface control system1102 may be provided by a combination of the administrator computer24401 and the cloud platform 22223. By way of example, one or moreservices servers 24411 can provide various functionalities such asauthentication, one or more other administrative functionalities,capability for uploading data, e.g., to one or more database servers,one or more system functionalities, one or more applications, e.g., appfunctions, and/or graphical visualization support via a dashboard. Theadministrator app 24402 can be executed on the administrator computer24401 through either a distinct application installed on theadministrator computer 24401, or accessed via an internet browserinstalled on the administrator computer 24401 pointing to a UniformResource Locator (URL) with a web site part of the services provided bycloud platform 22223 logically organized with admin 24408 in thisembodiment but not limited to that organization. In one embodiment, thefirst interaction between an administrator and the cloud platform occursthrough use of administrator app 24402 requesting login services, e.g.,via a user manager 1056 of methodical user interface control system1102, through service link 24403 to authenticate, 24404, withappropriate credentials that, e.g., include a unique username andpassword and/or metric identification and can also include an optionalor required additional authentication input, commonly referred to astwo-factor authentication, previously configured for use by anadministrator. In this embodiment, the login service retrieves a user'sencrypted credentials, through a service link 24405, from systemdatabase 24406 to verify that the administrator can access andadminister analytical computing system 21100 with the login updatingdata stored in system database 24406 through the service link 24407 totrack usage of analytical computing system 21100. An administrator canalso reset their own password via administrator app 24402 throughservice link 24403 to authenticate 24404 if they forgot or do not knowtheir password, with the password reset updating data stored in systemdatabase 24406 through service link 24407 to track usage of analyticalcomputing system 21100. Administrators can also configure theiradditional authentication input via administrator app 24402 throughservice link 24403 to authenticate 24404 so as to retrieve and changethe configuration of their additional authentication input throughservice link 24405 to system database 24406 with the configurationchange updating data stored in system database 24406 through the servicelink 24407 to track usage of analytical computing system 21100. After anadministrator is authenticated on login, they can use services providedby admin 24403 through use of administrator app 24402 through servicelink 24407 to perform administrative functions of the analyticalcomputing system 21100, wherein, these services, as required, use theservice link 24407 to create, read, update and/or delete data stored insystem database 24406, e.g., via data storage manager 1064, with the useof these services also creating and updating data stored in systemdatabase 24406 through the service link 24407 to track usage ofanalytical computing system 21100. Additionally, an administrator inperforming administrative functions for analytical computing system21100, as provided by administrator app 24402, can create one or morenew groups of users whose use of the analytical computing system 21100is through a shared team database 24414 through a service link 24413 aswell as create a new database server 24415 through a service link 24412to which the new team database 24414 can be added so as to optimizeperformance of database server(s) 24415. Ultimately, an administratorcan logout from use of analytical computing system 21100 viaadministrator app 24402 through service link 24403 to terminate theircurrent use of analytical computing system 21100 with the logout serviceof authenticate 24404 updating the administrator's login informationthrough a service link 24409 to the system database 24406 with thelogout updating data stored in system database 24406 through servicelink 24407 to track usage of analytical computing system 21100.Analytical Computing System 21100 can include one or more ServicesServers 24411. These servers are adapted to host various applicationsand/or modules including, system modules, application modules,authentication modules, administrative modules, dashboard modules, andupload modules. In one embodiment, the authentication and administrationmodules allow users to communicate, e.g., through one or more servicelink, with System Database 24406 and/or the Team Database 24414 throughthe Administrator App 24402.

FIG. 25 is an embodiment of an analytical user using an analytical usercomputer 25502 to run an analytical user app software 25503 to performanalytical functions provided by an analytical computing system 21100through services provided through a cloud platform at 22223. Theanalytical user app software 25503, as discussed herein, may employ aMUI as described above to facilitate user access to the functionalityprovided. As such, embodiments of the methodical user interface controlsystem 1102 may be provided by a combination of the analytical usercomputer 25502 and the cloud platform 22223. The analytical user app25503 can be executed on analytical user computer 25502 through either adistinct application installed on the analytical user computer 25502 oraccessed via an internet browser installed on the analytical usercomputer 25502 pointing to a URL with a web site part of the servicesprovided by cloud platform 22223 logically organized with an application25509 in this embodiment but not limited to that organization. In onepractice, the first interaction for an analytical user with cloudplatform 22223 is through use of an analytical user app 25503 requestinglogin services through a service link 25504 to authenticate, 25505, withappropriate credentials that can include a unique username and passwordand/or another information such as biometric identification and can alsoinclude an optional or required additional authentication input,commonly referred to as two-factor authentication, previously configuredfor use by an administrator, wherein, the login service can retrieve auser's encrypted credentials through a service link 25506 from a systemdatabase 25507 to verify that the analytical user may access and useanalytical computing system 21100 with the login updating data stored insystem database 25507 through the service link 25506 to track usage ofanalytical computing system 21100. An analytical user can also resettheir password via analytical user app 25503 through service link 25504to authenticate, 25505, if they forgot or do not know their passwordwith the password reset updating data stored in system database 25507through service link 25506 to track usage of analytical computing system21100. An analytical user can also configure their additionalauthentication input via analytical user app 25503 through service link25504 to authenticate, 25505, so as to retrieve and change theconfiguration of their additional authentication input through servicelink 25506 to system database 25507 with the configuration changeupdating data stored in system database 25507 through the service link25506 to track usage of analytical computing system 21100. After ananalytical user is authenticated on login, they can use servicesprovided by an application 25509 through use of the analytical user app25503 through a service link 25508 to perform analytical functionsprovided by application 25509, wherein, these services, as required, usethe service link 25510 to create, read, update, and/or delete datastored in team database 25511 with the use of these services alsocreating and updating data stored in system database 25507 through theservice link 25510 to track usage of analytical computing system 21100.Ultimately, an analytical user can logout from use of the analyticalcomputing system 21100 via analytical user app 25503 through servicelink 25504 to terminate their current use of analytical computing system21100 with the logout service of authenticate 25505 updating theanalytical user login information through service link 25506 to thesystem database 25507 with the logout updating data stored in systemdatabase 25507 through the service link 25506 to track usage ofanalytical computing system 21100.

In FIG. 26 is an embodiment of a data integration computer 26602 runningdata integration app software 26603 to perform data integrationfunctions provided by an analytical computing system 21100 throughservices provided through a cloud platform at 22223 between theanalytical computing system 21100 and, optionally, computing system(s)not part of analytical computing system 21100. The data integration appsoftware 26603, as discussed herein, may employ a MUI as described aboveto facilitate user access to the functionality provided. As such,embodiments of the methodical user interface control system 1102 may beprovided by a combination of the data integration computer 26602 and thecloud platform 22223. The data integration app 26603 can be provided aspart of analytical computing system 21100 and/or can be provided by ananalytical user or someone working with an analytical user. In onepractice, the first interaction for data integration app 26603 withcloud platform 22223 is requesting login services through a service link26604 to authenticate 26605 with appropriate credentials configured byan administrator that preferably include a unique username and passwordand can also include an optional or required additional authenticationinput, commonly referred to as two-factor authentication, previouslyconfigured for use by an administrator, wherein, the login service canretrieve the encrypted credentials for data integration app 26603through service link 26606 from a system database 26607 to verify thatthe data integration app 26603 can access and use analytical computingsystem 21100 with the login updating data stored in system database26607 through the service link 26606 to track usage of the analyticalcomputing system 21100. After a data integration app 26603 isauthenticated on login, it can use services provided by application26609 through use of data integration app 26603 through a service link26608 to perform analytical functions provided by the application 26609,wherein, these services, as required, use a service link 26610 tocreate, read, update, and/or delete data stored in a team database 26611with the use of these services also creating and updating data stored insystem database 26607 through the service link 26610 to track usage ofthe analytical computing system 21100. Ultimately, a data integrationapp can logout from use of the analytical computing system 21100 viadata integration app 26603 through service link 26604 to terminate thecurrent use of analytical computing system 21100 with the logout serviceof authenticate 26605 updating the data integration app logininformation through the service link 26606 to system database 26607 withthe logout updating data stored system database 26607 through theservice link 26606 to track usage of the analytical computing system21100.

In FIG. 27 is an embodiment of a user monitoring the use of ananalytical computing system 21100 using a support user computer 27702 torun the monitoring user app software 27703 to perform monitoringfunctions provided by the analytical computing system 21100 throughservices provided through a cloud platform 22223. The monitoring userapp software 27703, as discussed herein, may employ a MUI as describedabove to facilitate user access to the functionality provided. As such,embodiments of the methodical user interface control system 1102 may beprovided by a combination of the support user computer 27702 and thecloud platform 22223. The monitoring user app 27703 can be executed onthe support user computer 27702 through either a distinct applicationinstalled on the support user computer 27702 or accessed via an internetbrowser installed on the support user computer 27702 pointing to a URLwith a web site part of the services provided by cloud platform 22223logically organized with a dashboard 27709 in this embodiment, but notlimited to that organization. In one practice, the first interaction fora support user computer with the cloud platform is through use of themonitoring user app 27703 requesting login services through a servicelink 27704 to authenticate 27705 with appropriate credentials thatpreferably include a unique username and password and/or metricidentification and could also include an optional or required additionalauthentication input, commonly referred to as two-factor authentication,previously configured for use by an administrator, wherein, the loginservice can retrieve a user's encrypted credentials through a servicelink 27706 from a system database 27707 to verify that the monitoringuser can access and monitor the analytical computing system 21100 withthe login updating data stored in system database 27707 through theservice link 27706 to track usage of analytical computing system 21100.A monitoring user can also reset their password via the monitoring userapp 27703 through service link 27704 to authenticate 27705 if theyforgot or do not know their password with the password reset updatingdata stored in system database 27707 through the service link 27706 totrack usage of analytical computing system 21100. A monitoring user canalso configure their additional authentication input via the monitoringuser app 27703 through service link 27704 to authenticate 27705 so as toretrieve and change the configuration of their additional authenticationinput through the service link 27706 to the system database 27707 withthe configuration change updating data stored in system database 27707through the service link 27706 to track usage of analytical computingsystem 21100. After a monitoring user is authenticated on login, theycan use services provided by a dashboard 27709 through use of themonitoring user app 27703 through a service link 27708 to performmonitoring functions of the analytical computing system 21100, wherein,these services, as required, use a service link 27710 to create, read,update, and/or delete data stored in system database 27707 with the useof these services also creating and updating data stored in systemdatabase 27707 through the service link 27710 to track usage of theanalytical computing system 21100. Ultimately, a monitoring user canlogout from use of the analytical computing system 21100 via monitoringuser app 27703 through a service link 27704 to terminate their currentuse of the analytical computing system 21100 with the logout service ofauthenticate 27705 updating the administrator's login informationthrough the service link 27706 to the system database 27707 with thelogout updating data stored in system database 27707 through the servicelink 27706 to track usage of the analytical computing system 21100.

In FIG. 28 is an embodiment of a support data integration computer 28802running monitoring data integration app software 28803 to performmonitoring data integration functions provided by the analyticalcomputing system 21100 through services provided through a cloudplatform at 22223 between analytical computing system 21100 and,optionally, computing system(s) not part of the analytical computingsystem 21100. The monitoring data integration app software 28803, asdiscussed herein, may employ a MUI as described above to facilitate useraccess to the functionality provided. As such, embodiments of themethodical user interface control system 1102 may be provided by acombination of the support data integration computer 28802 and the cloudplatform 22223. Thus, the monitoring data integration apps software isadapted to track, review, and/or monitor one or more features of thedata integration functions described herein. In one practice, the firstinteraction for a monitoring data integration app 28803 with the cloudplatform 22223 is requesting login services through a service link 28804to authenticate 28805 with appropriate credentials configured by anadministrator that preferably include a unique username and password andcan also include an optional or required additional authenticationinput, commonly referred to as two-factor authentication, previouslyconfigured for use by an administrator, wherein, the login service canretrieve the encrypted credentials for a monitoring data integration app28803 through a service link 28806 from a system database 28807 toverify that the monitoring data integration app can access and use theanalytical computing system 21100 with the login updating data stored insystem database 28807 through the service link 28806 to track usage ofthe analytical computing system 21100. After a monitoring dataintegration app 28803 is authenticated on login, it can use servicesprovided by a dashboard 28809 through use of the monitoring dataintegration app 28803 through a service link 28808 to perform monitoringfunctions provided by dashboard 28809, wherein, these services, asrequired, use a service link 28810 to create, read, update, and/ordelete data stored in system database 28807 with the use of theseservices also creating and updating data stored in system database 28807through the service link 28810 to track usage of the analyticalcomputing system 21100. Ultimately, a monitoring data integration app28803 can logout from use of the analytical computing system 21100 viamonitoring data integration app 28803 through a service link 28804 toterminate the current use of the analytical computing system 21100 withthe logout service of authenticate 28805 updating the monitoring dataintegration app login information through the service link 28806 to thesystem database 28807 with the logout updating data stored in systemdatabase 28807 through the service link 28806 to track usage of theanalytical computing system 21100.

In FIG. 29 is an embodiment of a consumable information upload computer29902 running a consumable information upload app software 29903 toperform consumable information upload functions provided by analyticalcomputing system 21100 via services provided through a cloud platform at22223 between the analytical computing system 21100 and, optionally,computing system(s) not part of the analytical computing system 21100.The consumable information upload app software 29903, as discussedherein, may employ a MUI as described above to facilitate user access tothe functionality provided. As such, embodiments of the methodical userinterface control system 1102 may be provided by a combination of theconsumable information upload computer 29902 and the cloud platform22223. In one practice, the first interaction for a consumableinformation upload app 29903 with the cloud platform at 22223 isrequesting login services through a service link 29904 to authenticate29905 with appropriate credentials configured to preferably include aunique username and password, wherein, the login service can retrievethe encrypted credentials for a consumable information upload app 29903through a service link 29906 from a system database 29907 to verify thatthe consumable information upload app can access and use the analyticalcomputing system 21100 with the login updating data stored in systemdatabase 29907 through the service link 29906 to track usage ofanalytical computing system 21100. After a consumable information uploadapp 29903 is authenticated on login, it can use services provided byupload 29909 through use of the consumable information upload app 29903through a service link 29908 to perform consumable information uploadfunctions provided by upload 29909, wherein, these services, asrequired, use the service link 29910 to push data to be stored inconsumable content 29911 associated with a particular customer accountfor subsequent storage to one or more team databases 29913 that areassociated with a particular customer account by upload 29909transferring the data via the service link 29912 with the use of theseservices also creating and updating data stored in system database 29907through the service link 29906 to track usage of the analyticalcomputing system 21100. Once upload is complete, a consumableinformation upload app 29903 can logout from use of the analyticalcomputing system 21100 via consumable information upload app 29903through a service link 29904 to terminate the current use of analyticalcomputing system 21100 with the logout service of authenticate 29905updating the consumable information upload app login information throughthe service link 29906 to the system database 29907 with the logoutupdating data stored in system database 29907 through the service link29906 to track usage of the analytical computing system 21100.

In FIG. 30 is an embodiment of an account information upload computer301002 running account information upload app software 301003 to performaccount update functions provided by analytical computing system 21100via services provided through a cloud platform at 22223 between theanalytical computing system 21100 and, optionally, computing system(s)not part of the analytical computing system 21100. The accountinformation upload app software 30103, as discussed herein, may employ aMUI as described above to facilitate user access to the functionalityprovided. As such, embodiments of the methodical user interface controlsystem 1102 may be provided by a combination of the account informationupload computer 301002 and the cloud platform 22223. The account updatefunctions can include adding, modifying, and/or deleting information asit relates to one more given accounts including, for example, usernames,passwords, permissions, and other attributes associated with one or moreindividual or team accounts. In one practice, the first interaction forthe account information upload app 301003 with cloud platform 22223 isrequesting login services through a service link 301004 to authenticate301005 with appropriate credentials configured that preferably include aunique username and password, wherein, the login service can retrievethe encrypted credentials for an account information upload app 301003through a service link 301006 from a system database 301007 to verifythat the account information upload app can access and use theanalytical computing system 21100 with the login updating data stored insystem database 301007 through the service link 301006 to track usage ofthe analytical computing system 21100. After an account informationupload app 301003 is authenticated on login, it can use servicesprovided by admin 301009 through use of the account information uploadapp 301003 through a service link 301008 to perform the accountinformation upload functions provided by admin 301009, wherein, theseservices, as required, use a service link 301010 to push data to bestored in system database 301007 associated with creating or updating acustomer account with the use of these services also creating andupdating data stored in system database 301007 through the service link301010 to track usage of the analytical computing system 21100. Onceupload is complete, an account information upload app 301003 can logoutfrom use of the analytical computing system 21100 via accountinformation upload app 301003 through a service link 301004 to terminatethe current use of the analytical computing system 21100 with the logoutservice of authenticate 301005 updating the account information uploadapp login information through the service link 301006 to the systemdatabase 301007 with the logout updating data stored in system database301007 through the service link 301006 to track usage of the analyticalcomputing system 21100.

In FIG. 31 is an embodiment of an instrument information upload computer311102 running instrument information upload app software 311103 toperform instrument information upload functions provided by analyticalcomputing system 21100 via services provided through a cloud platform at22223 between the analytical computing system 21100, and optionallycomputing system(s) not part of analytical computing system 21100. Therunning instrument information upload app software 311103, as discussedherein, may employ a MUI as described above to facilitate user access tothe functionality provided. As such, embodiments of the methodical userinterface control system 1102 may be provided by a combination of theinstrument information upload computer 311102 and the cloud platform22223. The first interaction for an instrument information upload app311103 with the cloud platform at 22223 is requesting login servicesthrough a service link 311104 to authenticate 311105 with appropriatecredentials configured that preferably include a unique username andpassword, wherein, the login service can retrieve the encryptedcredentials for an instrument information upload app 311103 through aservice link 311106 from a system database 311107 to verify that aninstrument information upload app can access and use the analyticalcomputing system 21100 with the login updating data stored in systemdatabase 311107 through the service link 311106 to track usage of theanalytical computing system 21100. After an instrument informationupload app 311103 is authenticated on login, it can use servicesprovided by upload 311109 through use of an instrument informationupload app 311103 through a service link 311108 to perform instrumentinformation upload functions provided by upload 311109, wherein, theseservices, as required, use the service link 311110 to create a newinstrument on first occurrence of an instrument and push data to bestored in instrument content 311111 associated with the instrument for aparticular customer account for subsequent storage to an account in thesystem database 311107 through the service link 311106 with the use ofthese services also creating and updating data stored in system database311107 through the service link 311106 to track usage of the analyticalcomputing system 21100. Once upload is complete, an instrumentinformation upload app 311103 can logout from use of the analyticalcomputing system 21100 via instrument information upload app 311103through a service link 311104 to terminate the current use of theanalytical computing system 21100 with the logout service ofauthenticate 311105 updating the instrument information upload app logininformation through the service link 31106 to the system database at1107 with the logout updating data stored in system database 311107through the service link 311106 to track usage of the analyticalcomputing system 21100.

In FIG. 32 is an embodiment of a coordinated-operation instrumentcomputer 321202 running coordinated-operation instrument app software321203 to perform coordinated-operation instrument functions provided byanalytical computing system 21100 via services provided through a cloudplatform at 22223 associated with instrumentation processing where acoordinated-operation instrument provides an integration of one or moreindividual operation instruments; an integration of custom-designedhardware; or a combination of one or more individual-operationinstruments with custom-designed hardware. The coordinated-operationinstrument app software 321203, as discussed herein, may employ a MUI asdescribed above to facilitate user access to the functionality provided.As such, embodiments of the methodical user interface control system1102 may be provided by a combination of the coordinated-operationinstrument computer 321202 and the cloud platform 22223. In onepractice, the first interaction for a coordinated-operation instrumentapp 321203 with the cloud platform at 22223 is requesting login servicesthrough a service link 321204 to authenticate 321205 with appropriatecredentials configured that preferably includes a unique username andpassword, wherein, the login service can retrieve the encryptedcredentials for a coordinated-operation instrument app 321203 through aservice link 321206 from a system database 321207 to verify that acoordinated-operation instrument app 321203 can access and use theanalytical computing system 21100 with the login updating data stored insystem database 321207 through the service link 321206 to track usage ofthe analytical computing system 21100. The coordinated-operationinstrument computer 321202 running coordinated-operation instrument appsoftware 321203 can communicate with a system component 321213 of aservices server via a service link 321212, which may communicate with ateam database 321211 via a service link 321210; thecoordinated-operation instrument computer 321202 runningcoordinated-operation instrument app software 321203 can communicatewith an application component 321209 of a service server via a servicelink 321208. One or more services server components, e.g., 321213,321209, 321205, may communicate with a bulk data server, e.g., accessinstrument content 321215, via a service link 321214.

In FIG. 33A is an embodiment of an individual-operation instrumentcomputer 331302 running individual-operation instrument app software331303 to perform individual-operation instrument functions provided byanalytical computing system 21100 via services provided through a cloudplatform at 22223 associated with instrumentation processing. Theindividual-operation instrument app software 331303 as discussed herein,may employ a MUI as described above to facilitate user access to thefunctionality provided. As such, embodiments of the methodical userinterface control system 1102 may be provided by a combination of theindividual-operation instrument computer 331302 and the cloud platform22223. In one embodiment, an individual-operation instrument performsone or more logical assay steps on one or more samples in a stepwiseprocess to collect data about the samples under test. In thisembodiment, the individual-operation instrument does not perform allassay steps, which can include, without limitation, steps that relate toa plate reader, plate washer, plate incubator, plate shaker, plateincubator-shaker, pipetting system, or any other type of instrument usedin support of analytical sample testing. In other embodiments, theindividual-operation instrument can perform all assay steps. The firstinteraction for an individual-operation instrument app 331303 with thecloud platform at 22223 is requesting login services through a servicelink 331304 to authenticate 331305 with appropriate credentialsconfigured that preferably includes a unique username and password,wherein, the login service can retrieve the encrypted credentials for anindividual-operation instrument app 331303 through a service link 331306from a system database 331307 to verify that an individual-operationinstrument app 331303 can access and use the analytical computing system21100 with the login updating data stored in system database 331307through the service link 331306 to track usage of the analyticalcomputing system 21100. In the alternative, the individual-operationinstrument computer 331302 can assist in performing other functions inaddition to or in place of the assay steps and/or plate-based testsdescribed herein.

In FIG. 33B is an embodiment of an individual-operation instrumentcomputer 331302 running workflow-aid instrument app software 331331 toperform individual-operation instrument functions provided by analyticalcomputing system 21100 via services provided through a cloud platform at22223 associated with instrumentation processing. Theindividual-operation instrument app software 331331 as discussed herein,may employ a MUI as described above to facilitate user access to thefunctionality provided. As such, embodiments of the methodical userinterface control system 1102 may be provided by a combination of theindividual-operation instrument computer 331330 and the cloud platform22223. The workflow-aid instrument helps a user perform collection ofassay components used in the processing of the assays in an associatedexperiment, as well as, preparing bioassay components that requirepreparation prior to be used in the processing of an assay, for examplebut not limited to, rehydrating lyophilized reagents, thawing frozenreagents, pretreating samples, and/or any other step required to prepareconstituent components to be used in processing one or more assays in achosen experiment. The first interaction for an workflow-aid instrumentapp 331331 with the cloud platform 22223 is requesting login servicesthrough a service link 331332 to authenticate 331333 with appropriatecredentials configured with preferably unique username and password,wherein, the login service would retrieve the encrypted credentials foran workflow-aid instrument app 331331 through a service link 331334 fromsystem database 331335 to verify a workflow-aid instrument app 331331may access and use the analytical computing system 21100 with the loginupdating data stored in system database 331335 through the service link331334 to track usage of the analytical computing system 21100. Afterworkflow-aid instrument app 331331 is authenticated on login, it willuse services provided by application 331337 through use of aworkflow-aid instrument app 331331 through a service link 331336 toperform workflow-aid instrument app functions provided by application331337 wherein, these services as required use the service link 331338to retrieve experiments ready to be processed 331339; to store data331339 as an experiment is processing; and/or to store data 331339 afteran experiment completes processing, with the use of these services alsocreating and saving data stored in system database 331335 through theservice link 331334 to track usage of the analytical computing system21100. Once a user has completed use of a workflow-aid instrument app331331, they could logout from use of the analytical computing system331300 via workflow-aid app 331331 through a service link 331332 toterminate the current use of the analytical computing system 21100 withthe logout service of authenticate 331333 updating a workflow-aidinstrument app login information through the service link 331334 to thesystem database 331335 with the logout updating data stored in systemdatabase 331335 through the service link 331334 to track usage of theanalytical computing system 21100.

In FIG. 34A and FIG. 34B is a combined embodiment of softwarearchitecture for services deployed on cloud platform 22223. Scalablecomputing service 341401 associated with cloud platform 22223 provide asecure computing environment for scaling the server utilization ofservices servers 341406 as system computing requirements change, as wellas supporting the building of failure-resilient applications andisolating them from common failure scenarios. Bulk storage service341402 associated with cloud platform 22223 provides unlimited datastorage space in a highly available and durable way for any kind of datato be stored, such as images, video, documents, binary data files,and/or other types of files. Database service 341403 associated withcloud platform 22223 provides a secure, distributed, scalable databasesystem used to store structured data for applications and system,supporting and easily distributing one or more databases across one ormore servers. Lambda function service 341404 associated with cloudplatform 22223 provides an event-driven computing platform for runningspecial-built utility applications in response to configured events,while automatically managing computing resources required by thesespecial-built utility applications. Load balancing service 341405 withcloud platform 22223 provides distribution of incoming service requestsfrom clients across multiple services servers 341406 to meet continuousperformance demands, as well as performing health checks on the scalablecomputing service 341401 to ensure the service is operational beforesending requests and providing an extra security layer by isolating thescalable computing service 341401 from direct access from the internet.Logical collection of authenticate services 341407 deployed on servicesservers 341406 provides login services 341408 supporting a user loggingin with username and password with strong password policy andcustomizable password expiration period; and services 341409 supportingtwo-factor authentication (2FA) for a supplemental method of confirminga user's claimed identity by using another form of authentication otherthan a username and password, for example using a Time-based One-timePassword algorithm (TOTP) optionally configured on or off for anaccount. Logical collection of admin services 341410 deployed onservices servers 341406 provides account services 341411 supportingaccount preparation, team creation, team administration, softwarereleases, and instrument service plan; and team services 341412supporting managing team membership, defining role permissions per eachmodule, assigning users one or more roles, and notifying users via emailof key events in the system pertinent to them. Logical collection ofdashboard services 341413 deployed on services servers 341406 providesperformance data services 341414 supporting gathering use andperformance data from all instruments and consumables in the fieldoperating within the system for analysis and presentation as well as,supporting export of this data to external systems; and account services341415 providing visibility into the structure and operation of variousteams and their users in an account plus across all accounts andsupporting export of this data to external systems, as well as providingability to monitor and disable suspicious and/or undesired behavior.Logical collection of upload services 341416 deployed on servicesservers 341406 provides instrument information services 341417supporting import of instrument information from external systems for anaccount and teams associated with an account; and consumable informationservices 341418 supporting import of consumable information fromexternal systems for an account and teams associated with an account.Logical collection of system services 341419 deployed on servicesservers 341406 providing performance data upload services 341420supporting storing instrument and consumable performance data frominstruments in the field operating within the system to be stored usingbulk storage service 341402; and content services 341421 supportingdissemination of user manuals and application installers for variousversions of applications.

Logical collection of application services 341422 deployed on servicesservers 341406 providing plate services 341423 supporting storing for auser plate data, including signal, plate identifier, username whoprocessed the plate, timestamp of execution, and plate type, in a teamdatabase associated with the requesting user; audit log services 341424supporting capturing time-stamped events linked to a user's actions withdata and services in the system to be stored in the team's databaseassociated with a user performing the actions; experiment services341425 supporting creating an experiment with selected assay methods andsamples to process, committing an experiment for execution and storingto a requesting user's team database, retrieving plate data frominstruments to store with an experiment in a requesting user's teamdatabase, retrieving a collection of recent or all experiments from arequesting user's team database, initiating calculation of results usingone or more associated analysis methods and storing to a requestinguser's team database, and retrieving a specific experiment with itsplate data including calculated results from a requesting user's teamdatabase; assay method services 341426 supporting retrieving acollection of recent or all assay methods from a requesting user's teamdatabase, retrieving a specific assay method from a requesting user'steam database with assay method configuration data including but notlimited to assay method name, associated assays to be tested, layout ofdifferent sample types being optionally calibrators, optionallycontrols, optionally blanks, and optionally samples (i.e., unknowns),analysis method assignments to the assay method as well as optionally toone or more assays associated with the assay method, and protocolparameters configuring the performance of the assay method eithermanually or automatically, and committing the assay method for usestoring it in the requesting user's team database; and data analysisservices 341427 supporting retrieving a collection of recent or allanalysis methods from a requesting user's team database, retrieving aspecific analysis method from a requesting user's team database withanalysis method configuration data including but not limited to analysismethod name, algorithm and associated configuration, backgrounddetection configuration, and limits of detection configuration, andcommitting the analysis method for ultimate use storing it in therequesting user's team database. In the alternative, the logicalcollection of application services 341422 can assist in performing otherservices in addition to or in place of the assay services and/or platebased tests described herein.

In FIG. 35A is an embodiment of a logical design for system data for theanalytical computing system with the data entities organized in logicalgroups as defined by Account and Team 351500, Instrument and ServicePlan 351501, User and Role 351502, Software Release 351503, Multi-Region351504, and Audit Trail 351505, wherein, Account and Team 351500includes one or more data entities associated with managing an accountof users organized into teams on the analytical computing system;Instrument and Service Plan 351501 includes one or more data entitiesassociated with instrumentation used in conjunction with the analyticalcomputing system; User and Role 351502 includes one or more dataentities associated with managing the users assigned to zero or moreteams on the analytical computing system; Software Release 351503includes one or more data entities associated with managing new releasesof software for the analytical computing system; Multi-Region 351504includes one or more data entities associated with managing deploymentof an account on a cloud platform providing support for a geographicallydistributed computing environment providing localized performanceimprovement and/or meeting governmental restrictions such that anaccount could be located to a desired geographical location; and AuditTrail 351505 includes one or more data entities associated withcapturing a log of actions performed by administrators of the analyticalcomputing system. Account and Team 351500 having a data entity 351506representing one or more accounts on the analytical computing systemwhere each account has associated with it a data entity 351509representing one or more teams organized within an account and a dataentity 351507 representing a company establishing a specific account forwhich is a data entity 351508 representing a contact who is responsiblefor preparing use of the account for a company, such that each company351507 can have more than one account associated with it as prepared bya specific primary contact 351508. Instrument and Plan 351501 has a dataentity 351513 representing one or more instruments to be used inconjunction with an account on the analytical computing system whereeach instrument has associated with it a data entity 351511 representingthe ship-to address associated with a data entity 351510 representing aparent company to which the associated instrument was shipped, such thata Parent Company 351510 may have associated with it one or more Ship-ToAddresses 351511 that in turn can have associated with it one or moreInstruments 351513 that have associated with each instrument a dataentity 351512 representing a service plan either active or inactive foran instrument that itself is associated with an Account 351506 to aid anadministrator in managing service plan renewals of one or moreinstruments potentially in use with the account on the analyticalcomputing system. User and Role 351502 has a data entity 351514representing a distinct user of the analytical computing systemassociated with one or more teams 351509 prepared for an Account 351506where each user has for a team an association with a data entity 351515representing a role in the use of the analytical computing system with aprescribed set of software function permissions as defined in theassociated data entity 351516 derived from the permissions defined bythe data entity 351518 associated with the data entity 351517representing each software module in the analytical computing system,such that, a distinct User 351514 may participate with one or more teams351509 where each team could be in the same or different accounts 351506and the user assuming one or more roles 351515 for each team thatenables and disables one or more functions of the software as configuredfor each role 351516. Software Release 351503 has a data entity 351519representing the overarching software release of a collection of one ormore applications in the analytical computing system as represented bythe data entity 351520, such that each Account 351506 is using aparticular software release 351519 and may upgrade to one of one or morenew software releases 351519, but all users 351514 associated with anAccount 351506 have up to upgrade to the new software release 351519when an Account 351506 performs the upgrade. Multi-Region 351504 has adata entity 351522 representing the geographical region supported by thecloud platform and associated a data entity 351523 representing thedatabase server for user for creating databases for use, such that, anAccount 351506 is associated with a specific geographical region 351522to which all of its Teams 351509 will have their associated databases351523 created for use by each respective team so that only Users 351514assigned to a Team 351509 may access the assigned database created351523. Audit trail 351505 includes data entity 351524 representing anaudit event. Software release 351503 can include version control 351521,which is adapted to document, maintain, and/or track previous versionsof the Software release 351503. In one embodiment, version control351521 includes information as it relates to the existing version andall previous versions of Software release 351503 along with informationto changes to the software that propagated through the various versionsof the software. Moreover, version control 351521 can includeinformation as it relates to future plans for additional revisions toSoftware release 351503. Audit trail 351505 can further include an auditevent 351524, which can be used to trigger a system audit and/or auditvarious user- or instrument-based operations.

In FIG. 35B is an embodiment of a mapping between one or more businessentities 351570 and 351576 using an analytical computing system 351581to the analytical computing system 351581 through the cloud platform351582 used in delivering electronic information about purchasedproducts as the products prepared for physical shipping. Business entity351570 can include, but is not limited to, a corporation, limitedliability company, sole proprietorship, non-profit company, academicinstitution, government agency or affiliate, private individual or groupof individuals, research institute, or any other type entity using theanalytical computing system 351581, wherein the business entity 351570is described by parent business information 351571 that can haveassociated with it zero or one or more ship-to addresses 351572 and351574, wherein the ellipse 351573 illustrates the potential for zero orone or more ship-to addresses, where each ship-to is a unique address towhich the business entity 351570 wants products it purchases to bedelivered for ultimate use within the targeted business entity. Theship-to 351572 labelled “A” and the ship-to 351574 labelled “Z” ismerely illustrative as any number of ship-to addresses associated withany business entity are contemplated. A business entity 351570 or 351576can have zero ship-tos associated with it such that it purchases one ormore products to be delivered to some other business entity; regardless,each business entity can have an account with the analytical computingsystem 351581. As shown by element 351575, there can be zero or morebusiness entities as depicted 351570 and 351576 using the analyticalcomputing system 351581, but the parent information 351571 labelled “A”and the parent information 351577 labelled “Z” illustrates up to 26business entities 351570 and 351576 with their respective parentinformation 351571 and 351577, but any other number is contemplated aswell. Similarly, the business entity 351576 can be described by parentbusiness information 351577 that can have associated with it zero or oneor more ship-to addresses 351578 and 351580, with an wherein the ellipse351579 to illustrates the potential for zero or one or more ship-toaddresses, where each ship-to is a unique address to which the businessentity 351576 wants products it purchases to be delivered for use withinthe targeted business entity. The ship-to 351578 labelled “A” and theship-to 351580 labelled “Z” represents 26 ship-tos associated with anybusiness entity, but any other number is contemplated as well. 351581 isthe analytical computing system with its associated computing platform351582 and its system database 351583 and consumable content 351585wherein the system database 351583 has stored with it in part acollection of data 351584 being account information of business entitiesusing the analytical computing system 351581 having an auto-generatedunique identifier from cloud platform 351581 for tracking a businessentity's use of the analytical computing system 351581 along with theaccount's identifier being associated with the unique identifier of thebusiness entity in this example of an embodiment being either Parent AID for business entity 351570 or Parent Z ID for business entity 351576,while also being depicted that a business entity could have more thanone account on the analytical computing system 351581 since Parent Z IDis repeated; and consumable content 351585 having stored with it acollection of purchased consumable content being the general andlot-specific content for a purchased product as shipped to a businessentity, Parent A ID being the business entity 351570 and Parent Z IDbeing the business entity 351576, to particular ship-to addresses of theassociated business entity 351570 and 351576, where the ship-toaddresses are unique within a business entity 351570 and 351576, but notnecessarily unique between the two business entities, which is to say,two different business entities can share a common ship-to address, suchthat the cloud platform 351581 may transfer consumable content to eachaccount on the analytical computing system that can desire to use apurchased consumable available to it as determined through the PARENT IDmechanism of ACCOUNT 351584 mapped to the associated ship-tos as definedin consumable content 351585.

In FIG. 35C is an embodiment of a logical design for data representingplate data generated by a user for a team using instrumentation inconjunction with the analytical computing system with the data entities351599 logically organized have a data entity 351594 representing aphysical plate processed and/or analyzed by instrumentation where eachplate has an association with a data entity 351595 representing adefinition of how many measurements of the possible measurements thisplate will provide for each tested sample; an association with a dataentity 351596 representing the collected data produced from the plate;an association with a data entity 351597 representing the configurationof the instrumentation used to produce the collected data; and anassociation with a data entity 351598 representing any abnormal eventsthat might have occurred on the instrumentation in the process ofproducing the collected data 351596 from the plate 351594. Although thisembodiment describes plate-reader operations and/or applications, themethods described herein can be applied in the alternative to thelogical design of other experiments and tests in the alternative.

In FIG. 35D is an embodiment of a logical design for data representingmethods for performing assays in the analytical computing system withthe data entities 351569 logically organized having a data entity 351560representing a named assay method to be performed using consumables andinstrumentation where each assay method has an association with a dataentity 351561 representing a named method by which data collected frominstrumentation is post-analyzed to provide assay context to thecollected data in association with a data entity 351566 representing theconfiguration of settings relevant to a prescribed analysis as well asan optional association with a data entity 351567 representing theconfiguration of settings relevant to a prescribed analysis leveraging acurve fitting technique; an association with a data entity 351562representing a definition of how many measurements of the possiblemeasurements this plate will provide for each tested sample; anassociation with a data entity 351563 representing a definition of theavailable measurements each plate will provide for each tested sample inassociation with a data entity 351568 representing the specific assay tobe measured; an association with a data entity 351564 representinggeneral information about a consumable to be used with the assay method;and an association with a data entity 351565 representing a definitionof the layout of various types of samples to be dispensed on a platewhere the types of samples are calibrators, controls, blanks, andsamples (also referred to as unknowns or samples under test), such that,the collection of these data entities provides the assay-specificcontext to help a user determine what the measured data collected frominstrumentation means about the samples they are testing. Although thisembodiment describes methods for performing assays and/or plate-basedtests, other experiments and tests are contemplated as well.

In FIG. 35E is an embodiment of a logical design for data representing acollection of plates organized to be processed together orindependently, either way a unit of schedulable work referred to as arun, with the data entities 351592 logically organized having a dataentity 351586 representing a run to be processed using instrumentationwith the run having an association with a data entity 351594representing a physical plate processed by instrumentation; anassociation with a data entity 351560 representing each assay methodused with each corresponding plate for the run; an association with adata entity 351588 representing a run record; and an association with adata entity 351589 representing a system record. The data entity 351588has associations with a data entity 351590 representing a kit inventoryrecord and with a data entity 351591 representing a sample layout.Although this embodiment describes plate-based operations and/orapplications, the methods described herein can be applied in thealternative to the review of other experiments and tests in thealternative.

In FIG. 35F is an embodiment of a logical design for data representingthe definition of a collection of sample(s) to be measured, assaymethod(s) to be used to prepare the samples to be measured on plates,and analysis results determined from the measured data using analysisalgorithm(s) defined in association with an assay method and/or itsconstituent assays, all referred to as an experiment, with data entities351542 logically organized having 351535 a data entity representing anexperiment to be processed using instrumentation with the experimenthaving an association with a data entity 351536 representing a plateprocessed in the context of an experiment where one or more of theseprocessed plates are associated with a run 351586 and associations withdata entities 351539 and 351541 used to post-analyze the measured datafrom a plate using assay method setup to determine results 351540; anassociation with a data entity 351537 representing a specification ofthe structure of data table to be presented for the measured data fromplates; and an association with a data entity 351538 representing acollection of sample statistics determined from the measured andanalyzed data. Although this embodiment describes methods for performingassays and/or plate-based experiments, other experiments and tests arecontemplated as well.

In FIG. 36A is an embodiment of an example of account structure forusers of analytical computing system 361600, but this example is notintended to limit the account structure in any way since the analyticalcomputing system 361600 can support an infinite number of accounts, aninfinite number of teams in an account, and an infinite number ofadministrators and/or other users assigned to accounts and/or teams. Inthe example for this embodiment there are shown four accounts preparedon analytical computing system 361600 as represented by Account 1361601, Account 2 361602, Account 3 361603, and Account 4 361604, theseaccount names used to aid in the example. Each account has associatedwith it one or more teams where, Account 1 361601 has one team namedTeam with a team database 361607 dedicated to that team; Account 2361602 has one team named Team to illustrate team names are only uniquewithin an account, also with its dedicated team database 361611; Account3 361603 has two teams named Team 1 361615 with its dedicated teamdatabase 361617 and Team 2 361616 with its own dedicated team database361618; and Account 4 361604 has two teams named Team A 361626 with itsdedicated team database 361628 and Team B 361627 with its own dedicatedteam database 361629. The users in the various accounts and teams areuniquely named as well to illustrate users can be uniquely named foreasy end-user identification with User 1 361605 and 361608, User 2361609 and 361623, User 3 361612, User 4 361613, User 5 361614, User 6361619 and 361622, User 7 361620 and 361633, User 8 361621, User 9361624 and 361630, User 10 361625, User 11 361631, and User 12 361632,but in the preferred embodiment the username would be a fully expressedunique email address and/or username of a user, simplified for thisexample. Additionally User 1 361605 illustrates a user could be anaccount admin, a team admin, and/or a team member; User 2 361609illustrates a user could only be an account admin and a team admin; User2 361623 illustrates a user could only be an account admin and alsoillustrates a user could be an admin of more than one account; User 5361614 illustrates a user could be a team admin for more than one team;User 6 361619 and 361622 illustrates a user could be a team member ofmore than one team in an account; User 7 361620 and 361633 illustrates auser may be a team member of more than one team in more than oneaccount; User 9 361624 illustrates a user could be a team admin and ateam member (e.g., shown 361630); User 10 361625 illustrates a usercould only be a team admin; User 3 361612, User 4 361613, User 6 361619,User 7 361620 and 361633, User 8 361621, User 11 361631, and User 12361632 illustrates users could only be assigned as a team member with noadministrative permissions; and not explicitly illustrated but should beobvious is there are no constraints placed by the system on how aparticular user is assigned to an account and teams associated with anaccount, since user assigned is fully the responsibility of the personor people managing an account and team(s) associated with an account.Additionally the analytical computing system 361600 in a preferredembodiment would provide a role-based permission mechanism beyondaccount administrator and team administrator to help control access tovarious system functions of the analytical computing system 361600 forvarious users on a team in an account where predefined anduser-changeable user roles could be but not limited in name and/ornumber to lab manager, designer, associate, operator, and maintenancetechnician; such that, an account administrator would have permissionsassociated with managing an account shared by users on all teams; a teamadministrator would have permissions associated with managing userparticipation on a team; a lab manager could have permissions withgreatest responsibility compared to other roles for users on a team; adesigner and associate could have permissions different than each otherbefitting each of their normal job functions; an operator could onlyhave permissions for normal operation of instrumentation; and amaintenance technician could only have permissions for maintenance anddiagnosis of instrumentation, where a user could be assigned more thanone role and given permissions aggregated across the assigned roles,hence, as an example User 1 361605 would have account permissions forAccount 1 361601, team administration of Team 361606 plus whatever otherpermissions based on the role(s) User 1 361605 assigned themselves asthe team administrator.

In FIG. 36B is an embodiment of the computing flow for creation andupdate of an account on the analytical computing system 361654. Thecomputing flow of the account information upload app 361653 may bemanaged, for example, by a MUI provided via methodical user interfacecontrol system 1102 operating, at least in part, on the accountinformation upload computer 361652 and the analytical computing system361654. For example, an admin module may be used to manage the interfaceembodiments of the computing flow. The flow is represented in a “swimlane” diagram depicting independent computing systems, analyticalcomputing system provider business system 361651, account informationupload computer 361652, and cloud platform 361655, each operatingconcurrently to each other with processing swim lanes for analyticalcomputing system provider business system 361651 depicted between lines361659 and 361660, processing swim lanes for account information uploadcomputer 361652 with its software application account information uploadapp 361653 depicted between lines 361660 and 361661, and processing swimlanes for cloud platform 361655 with its software account services361658 depicted between lines 361661 and 361662. The processing ofanalytical computing system provider business system 361651 is depictedas out of scope for the analytical computing system 361654 with thedotted-line outline of analytical computing system provider environment361650, but other embodiments are contemplated as well. Analyticalcomputing system provider business system 361651 can cause generation ofa request for a new account 361163 or an update to an existing account361669. The interface mechanism for processing between analyticalcomputing system provider business system 361651 and account informationupload app 361653 occurs through a messaging mechanism 361664 that canbe a file share, a message queue like Java Messaging Service, MicrosoftMessage Queue or some other queuing service, email, or some othermechanism for software applications to communicate with each other,wherein the processing 361663 can be to prepare a message with properformat and content per a prescribed interface definition withinformation about an account defined in the analytical computing systemprovider business system 361651 and post it to the messaging mechanism361664 for ultimate processing by the account information upload app361653. First flow to be described is account creation as initiated361663 to generate new account request based on an event that occurs inthe analytical computing system provider business system 361651 byposting a message via messaging mechanism 361664 with informationincluding, but not limited to, the account number as managed byanalytical computing system provider business system 361651, primarycontact information including but not limited to name, business contactaddress and phone number, the email address of the first person theanalytical computing system 361654 automatically contacts to initiatetheir setup and use of the analytical computing system 361654, theunique identifier for the account in the analytical computing systemprovider business system 361651, and any other information deemednecessary for an account. The message is received at step 361665 andchecked for the type of message being received first for a request tocreate an account at step 361666 then for updating an account at step361671 and if neither posting an error message at step 361676 tomessaging mechanism 361664 and returning wait for the next message atstep 361665. On receiving a create account request at step 361666, acreate account request is constructed at step 361667 from the messagecontent received from messaging mechanism 361664 to post at step 361668using the cloud platform 361655, e.g., using services server 361656which may include admin functionality or component 361657, wherein onreceipt of the post it is verified at step 361669 to ensure the requesthas all relevant content and on failure returning an error response atstep 361668 and on success create the account at step 361670 and storeall of the account information in the create post in the system databaseon the cloud platform 361655 and making the primary contact identifiedin the create post the first account administrator for the new accountemailing the primary contact with instructions of how to log into theanalytical computing system 361654 returning success to the requester atstep 361668, and returning at step 361667 the account information uploadapp 361653 to waiting for a message 361665. On receiving an updateaccount request 361671, an update account request is constructed 361672from the message content received from messaging mechanism 361664 topost at step 361673 using the cloud platform 361655, wherein on receiptof the post it is verified at step 361674 to ensure the request has allrelevant content and on failure returning an error response at step361673 and on success update the account at step 361675 and store all ofthe account information in the update post in the system database on thecloud platform 361655, returning success to the requester at step361673, and returning at step 361672 the account information upload app361653 to waiting for a message at step 361665.

In FIG. 36C is an embodiment of the computing flow for instrumentassociation with an account on the analytical computing system 361654.The computing flow of the instrument information upload app 361637 maybe managed, for example, by a MUI provided via methodical user interfacecontrol system 1102 operating, at least in part, on the instrumentinformation upload computer 361636 and the analytical computing system361654. For example, an admin module may be used to manage the interfacefeatures of the computing flow. The flow is represented in a “swim lane”diagram depicting independent computing systems, instrumentationprovider business system 361635, instrument information upload computer361636, and cloud platform 361655 (which may include services server361656 providing, e.g., an admin functionality or component 361657),each operating concurrently to each other with processing swim lanes forinstrumentation provider business system 361635 depicted between lines361659 and 361698, processing swim lanes for instrument informationupload computer 361636 with its software application instrumentinformation upload app 361637 depicted between lines 361698 and 361699,and processing swim lanes for cloud platform 361655 with its softwareaccount services 361658 depicted between lines 361699 and 361662. Theprocessing of instrumentation provider business system 361635 isdepicted as out of scope for the analytical computing system 361654 withthe dotted-line outline of instrumentation system provider environment361634, but other embodiments are contemplated as well. Instrumentationprovider business system 361635 results in a generation of a request fora new instrument purchase at step 361638, a request for an instrumentevaluation at step 361648, or a request for an instrument lease 361649,wherein, each request results in a ship of the instrument at step361639. The interface mechanism for processing between instrumentationprovider business system 361635 and instrument information upload app361637 occurs through a messaging mechanism 361640 that can be a fileshare, a message queue like Java Messaging Service, Microsoft MessageQueue or some other queuing service, email, or some other mechanism forsoftware applications to communicate with each other, wherein theprocessing at step 361638 and at step 361648 and at step 361649 can beto prepare a message with proper format and content per a prescribedinterface definition with information about an instrument purchase atstep 361638, evaluation at step 361648, or lease at step 361649including the ship-to address defined in the instrumentation providerbusiness system 361635 and post it to the messaging mechanism 361640 forultimate processing by the instrument information upload app 361637. Theresulting flow on purchase at step 361638, evaluation at step 361648, orlease at step 361649 is identical so the description can focus on newinstrument purchase as initiated at step 361638 to generate newinstrument purchase request based on an event that occurs in theinstrumentation provider business system 361635 by posting a message viamessaging mechanism 361640 with information including, but not limitedto, the account number of the analytical computing system to which theinstrument will be assigned as managed by instrumentation providerbusiness system 361635, instrument serial number, the unique identifierof the parent company of the organization expecting the instrument(s),and the unique identifier of the ship-to location to which theinstrument will be shipped as managed by the instrumentation businesssystem 361635, the service plan details associated with duration of theplan and the available number of seats for users to use the analyticalcomputing system 361654, and any other information deemed necessary foran account on the analytical computing system 361654. The message isreceived at step 361641 checking the message at step 361642 to confirmit is assigning an instrument to an account and if the message isassigning an instrument to an account then processing continues at step361643 but if not processing continues at step 361647 to post an errormessage to messaging mechanism 361640 and returning to get messages atstep 361641. On receipt of a correct instrument assignment request361642, processing continues at step 361643 to construct from themessage content received from messaging mechanism 361640 a request andput at step 361644 using the cloud platform 361655, wherein on receiptof the put it is verified at step 361645 to ensure the request has allrelevant content and on failure returning an error response at step361644 and on success assigning the instrument to the account at step361646 and storing all of the instrument information in the put requestin the system database for the account on the cloud platform 361655returning success to the requester at step 361644, and returning at step361643 the instrument information upload app 361637 to waiting for amessage at step 361641.

In FIG. 36D is an embodiment of the computing flow for consumableassociation with an account on the analytical computing system 361654.The computing flow of the consumable information upload app 361683 maybe managed, for example, by a MUI provided via methodical user interfacecontrol system 1102 operating, at least in part, on the consumableinformation upload computer 361682 and the analytical computing system361654. For example, an admin module may be used to manage the interfacefeatures of the computing flow. The flow is represented in a “swim lane”diagram depicting independent computing systems, consumable providerbusiness system 361681, consumable information upload computer 361682,and cloud platform 361655, each operating concurrently to each otherwith processing swim lanes for consumable provider business system361681 depicted between lines 361659 and 361696, processing swim lanesfor consumable information upload computer 361682 with its softwareapplication consumable information upload app 361683 depicted betweenlines 361696 and 361699, and processing swim lanes for cloud platform361655 (e.g., services server 361656 which may include adminfunctionality or component 361657) with its software account services361658 depicted between lines 361699 and 361662. The processing ofconsumable provider business system 361681 is depicted as out of scopefor the analytical computing system 361654 with the dotted-line outlineof consumable system provider environment 361680, but other embodimentsare contemplated as well. Analytical computing system 361654 results ina generation of a request for a new consumable purchase at step 361684with each request resulting in a ship of a consumable at step 361685.The interface mechanism for processing between consumable providerbusiness system 361681 and consumable information upload app 361683occurs through a messaging mechanism 361686 that can be a file share, amessage queue like Java Messaging Service, Microsoft Message Queue orsome other queuing service, email, or some other mechanism for softwareapplications to communicate with each other, wherein the processing atstep 361685 can be to prepare a message with proper format and contentper a prescribed interface definition with information about aconsumable purchase as well as lot-specific content associated with theconsumable(s) being purchased, including the unique identifier of theparent company expecting the consumable(s), and the unique identifier ofthe ship-to address defined in the consumable provider business system361681, and post it to the messaging mechanism 361686 for ultimateprocessing by the consumable information upload app 361683. Theresulting flow on purchase at step 361684 generates a new consumablepurchase request based on an event that occurs in the consumableprovider business system 361681 by posting a message via messagingmechanism 361686 with information including but not limited to thebarcodes of constituent components associated with a consumable, generaland lot-specific content associated with the consumable, the uniqueidentifier of the parent company, and the unique identifier of theship-to location to which the consumable(s) will be shipped as managedby the consumable business system 361681 and any other informationdeemed necessary for an account on the analytical computing system361654. The message is received at step 361687 checking the message atstep 361688 to confirm it is assigning a consumable to a site accountand if the message is assigning a consumable to a site account thenprocessing continues at step 361689 but if not processing continues atstep 361693 to post an error message to messaging mechanism at step361686 and returning to get messages at step 361687. On receipt of acorrect consumable purchase request at step 361688, processing continuesat step 361689 to construct from the message content received frommessaging mechanism 361686 a request and post it at step 361690 usingthe cloud platform 361655, wherein on receipt of the post at step 361690it is processed to store the new consumable information to consumablecontent on the cloud platform organizing the content on consumablecontent by parent account provided with the new consumable informationfor ultimate dissemination to instrument(s) and account(s) associatedwith the ship-to associated with the consumable, posting an event totrigger the ultimate dissemination to account(s) associated with theship-to of the consumable returning success to the requester at step361690, and returning at step 361689 the consumable information uploadapp 361683 to waiting for a message at step 361687. At step 361692processing trigged by an event being delivered at step 361691 thatinitiates the deployment of all new consumable information to one ormore accounts associated with ship-tos of the new consumables via theunique identifier of the parent company expecting the consumable(s).

In FIG. 37 is an embodiment of software modules in administrator app371700 forming the primary user interface experience for administrativework typically but not limited to using data configured and generatedthrough the use of services provided by cloud platform 371704 to create,read, update, and/or delete any and all data relevant to each module'sprocessing, as well as any other services needed for each module'sprocessing, wherein admin console module 371701 can be the active moduleby default when the administrator app 371700 starts. Admin audit trailmodule 371702 provides visibility into the actions various accountadmins and/or team admins perform in the administrator app 371700.Collection of system functions 371703 provides typical utilities insupport of use of a system such as but not limited to logging off,viewing help information, viewing user guide, viewing legal noticesand/or documents, changing user password, and/or other utilities. Thecollection of system function 371703 may be provided as a separate MUImodule and/or a series of software protocols that operate alongside theother discussed MUI modules. As discussed above, the administrator app371700 may employ a MUI supplied by a methodical user interface controlsystem 1102 for interface purposes. The admin console module 371701, theadmin audit trail module 371702, and the system functions 371703 may allemploy a MUI for user interface purposes. A user will log into theadministrator app 371700 through system functions 371703 using servicesprovided by cloud platform 371704. If authentication of an administratorby a login service on cloud platform 371704 returns an administrator hasmore than one account, an administrator could be required to select thedefault account, but if an administrator does not belong to more thanone account and/or team, the service on the cloud platform 371704 canauto-assign an administrator to the sole account for that administrator.On completing login, the user lands at start of the admin console module371701 and begins using the administrator app 371700 as they need.

In FIG. 38A is an embodiment of a user experience flow through adminconsole module for an account admin whose responsibilities are toadminister the overall account for an analytical computing system, aswell as, administering all teams associated with an account usingadministrator app at 381800 running on an admin's computer with eachstep through a user interface numbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ torepresent the stepwise flow from begin (1) to end (‘n’) for an admin asdepicted in administrator app at 381800 being labelled “1.” The userexperience flow of FIG. 38A may be managed by a MUI as discussed herein.FIGS. 38D-38H provide screenshots illustrating embodiments of theexperience flow illustrated in FIG. 38A. At 381801 an admin is requestedto login and in this case the authentication service on the cloudplatform recognizes the user logging in is identified as an accountadministrator per user configuration allowing the user to log in and ifnot recognized as an account administrator denied access with an errormessage informing the user. At 381810 the user interfaceauto-transitions to presenting a first menu of options including prepareteams at 381811, define administrators at 381812, manage teams at381815, and/or update account at 381822. On selecting prepare teams at381811 user interface presents an execution menu including informationon the number of seats available for an account, the maximum number ofteams an account may have, and the current set of named teams, if any. Afield to enter a new team name is provided with an execution functionthat will initiate the creation of new teams. The user may type in aunique team name and presses enter. The team name, if unique, is addedto the set of teams ready to be created for the account on initiatingexecution function, with the execution function invoking service(s) onthe cloud platform to create each new named team for an account in thesystem database and create a new team database on a database serverusing database service, as well as updating the new team database(s)through a lambda service invoked on the cloud platform to populateconsumable information from consumable content for potential use by eachnew team. Subsequent to execution, the user interface transitions backto start at 381810 to display the first menu again. Additionally, at381811 an account admin can change the name of a previously createdteam.

On selecting define administrators at 381812, transitions the userinterface to present the set of account admins, as well as admins foreach team created in prepare at 381811, a second menu of options ispresented including account administrators at 318813 and teamadministrators at 381814. The first menu may be relocated to anhistorical portion of the MUI. A user can optionally navigate to anexecution menu under account administrators at 381813 to add users namedby unique username to the set of account admins or to remove apreviously defined account admin for which on completion of the add orremove invokes a service on the cloud platform to update the accountadmin information in system database and notify the added account adminvia email and/or other electronic communication mechanism. The user mayalso optionally navigate to an execution menu under team administratorsat 381814 for one or more teams to add users named by unique username tothe set of the associated team's admins or remove previously definedteam admins for which on completion of the add or remove invokes aservice on the cloud platform to update the team admin information insystem database and notify the added team admin(s) via email and/orother electronic communication mechanism, where by default each accountadmin would be assigned as a team admin to each team to simplify teamadmin setup.

On selecting manage teams at 381815 from the first menu, the systemrelocates the first menu to a historical portion and presents a list ofthe one or more teams being administered as a second menu (not shown).After selecting a team from the second menu, a third menu of itemsincluding define roles and permissions 361816, add/remove members at381817, assign roles to members at 381818, and/or authorize and notifymembers at 381819. On selecting define roles and permissions at 381816 auser is provided an execution menu presenting options to configure eachrole in the system on a module-by-module basis based on all of themodules available in the analytical computing system is presented. Auser may also change one or more of the default roles names to whateverthey want. On selecting add/remove members at 381817 a user is providedan execution menu presenting the collection of usernames identified asmembers of the team, as well as the open seats available for newmembers, and enabling an account administrator to enter new memberusernames to add members if there are open seats and/or remove existingmembers using services on the cloud platform to update account teamconfiguration on each request updating the open seats available. Onselecting assign roles to members at 381818 a user is provided anexecution menu presenting the collection of members with the ability toturn on or off each role available for the account member by member,using services on the cloud platform to update account teamconfiguration on each request. On selecting authorize and notify membersat 381819 a user is provided an execution menu presenting a synopsis ofall members and their assigned roles with an authorize and notify optionto notify new members of being added to a team if any and/or informingexisting members of changes to their assigned role(s) if any. Thenotification may be invoked through a service request on cloud platformcausing an email and/or other electronic communication mechanism to besent to each affected user, and on completing transitioning the userinterface back to manage teams at 381815, also shown at 381821.

On selecting update account at 381822 the MUI transitions the userinterface to present a second menu of item to view software releases andrenewals associated with the account. On selection of releases at 381823the account administrator is presented information displaying the statusof the current release as well as available new releases. On selectingto upgrade to a new software release affecting the entire account theuser interface transitions to an execution menu for scheduling thesoftware update at 381824 presenting an account admin a function to setthe date and time for the update to occur. On acceptance of an admin'sconfiguration invoking a service on the cloud to store the scheduledupdate in system database, the MUI transitions back to releases at381823 and displays the scheduled date and time associated with the viewof software releases, and notifies all account members via email and/orother electronic communication mechanism of the impending update andperiodically notifying the account members at various configurabledate/time intervals so they are fair warned of an approaching update.When the update occurs, the system locks the account from use until suchtime as the software and database(s) for an account have been updatedper the software release. Additionally, an account admin may cancel orchange the date and time of an update at any time prior to the updateoccurring through selecting the scheduled date and time for a softwarerelease to transition to schedule update at 381824 to either cancel orchange the data. On selecting renewals at 381825 the accountadministrator is presented renewal status for all instrumentationassociated with the account, as well as, the available number of userseats for the account.

In FIG. 38B is an embodiment of a user experience flow through adminconsole module for a team admin whose responsibilities are to administerone or more teams associated with an account with administrator app at381800 running on an admin's computer with each step through a userinterface numbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ to represent the stepwiseflow from begin (1) to end (‘n’) for an admin as depicted inadministrator app at 381800 being labelled “1.” as the first step. Theuser experience flow of FIG. 38A may be managed by a MUI as discussedherein. Thus, as an admin works through the flow of the user interface,they may easily back track to one or more previous steps throughhistorical portions displaying previous menus. At 381801 an admin isrequested to login and in this case the authentication service on thecloud platform recognizes the user logging in is identified as a teamadministrator per user configuration allowing the user to log in and ifnot recognized as a team administrator denied access with an errormessage informing the user. At 381810 the user interface automaticallyselects manage teams at 381815 as a first menu item because the user isidentified as only a team administrator that has no additional accountadministration permissions. The team administrator is then presentedwith a second menu (not shown) permitting the selection of a team. Afterselection of a team from the second menu, the MUI may move to the thirdmenu, which display options for managing the team selected in the secondmenu, including the options for each managed team being to define rolesand permissions at 381816, add/remove members at 381817, assign roles tomembers at 381818, and/or authorize and notify members at 381819. Ifonly one team is managed by the administrator, the MUI may skip thesecond menu and jump immediately to the third menu.

On selecting define roles and permissions at 381816 the MUI transitionsthe user interface to an execution menu presenting options to configureeach role in the system on a module-by-module basis based on all of themodules available in the analytical computing system as pre-configuredin system content. On selecting add/remove members at 381817 the MUItransitions the user interface to an execution menu presenting thecollection of usernames identified as members of the team, as well as,the open seats available for new members, enabling a team administratorto enter new member usernames to add members if there are open seatsand/or remove existing members using services on the cloud platform toupdate account team configuration on each request updating the openseats available. On selecting assign roles to members at 381818 the MUItransitions the user interface to an execution menu presentingcollection of members with the ability to turn on or off each roleavailable for the account member by member, each member may have one ormore roles with the corresponding permissions module-by-module, usingservices on the cloud platform to update account team configuration oneach request. On selecting authorize and notify members at 381819 theMUI transitions the user interface to an execution menu presenting asynopsis of all members and their assigned roles with a authorize andnotify option to notify new members of being added to a team if anyand/or informing existing members of changes to their assigned role(s)if any.

In FIG. 38C is an embodiment of a user experience flow through loggingin to use any admin or user application in the analytical computingsystem beginning with login at 381801 with each step through the loginuser interface numbered sequentially 2 through ‘n’ to represent thestepwise flow from begin (1) to end (‘n’) for any user as depicted inlogin at 381801 being labelled “1.” as the first step of login, also, asa user works through the flow of logging in they could easily back trackto one or more previous steps. The user experience flow of FIG. 38C maybe managed by a MUI, as discussed herein. At 381801 a user is firstpresented an option to enter a unique username at 381802 as either anemail address, a user-provided name, or a system-provided name. Onentering or selecting a username the username can be checked through aservice request to the cloud platform to confirm this is a knownusername and on confirmation of being a known username transitioning topassword at 381803 for the user to provide the secure passwordassociated with the unique username that uniquely confirms authenticityof a user logging in, passing username and password through a servicerequest on the cloud platform to provide authentication. On properauthentication a user is permitted to use the application they wish touse. When authentication is not possible, an error message is presentedto inform the user they were not granted access. Optionally at 381804 itmay be required of a user to provide two-factor authentication (2FA)credentials to further secure access to the analytical computing systembecause an account admin has configured this security feature on for theaccount they administer. If 2FA is configured on for an account, a userlogging in the first time would have to perform a setup function at381805 typically, but not limited to, a user scanning a barcode ortyping a code provided in 2FA setup at 381805 into a separate 2FAapplication running on another computing device, mobile or otherwise,that synchronizes the user's use of an account with the separate 2FAapplication to provide another unique, independent credential to furtherconfirm the user is as logged in. Completing setup at 381805 causestransition to enter code at 381806 for a user to use the separate 2FAapplication to produce a one-time unique code for them to enter intologin for the code to be passed through a service request on the cloudplatform to perform the final authentication of the user logging in, onsuccess granted access and on failure getting an error message informinga user the access is not granted. At 381807, the user may be allowed toproceed, for example, choose account and/or team.

In further embodiments, the admin console module 371701 can be used tocreate, modify, and/or delete teams and/or accounts; add, remove, andmodify individual users within teams and/or accounts; and set, modify,and/or remove permissions for one or more individual users, teams,instruments, and/or accounts. Once these administrative procedures havebe carried out (e.g., by one or more administrators), notificationsand/or instructions can be transmitted to one or more of the users,accounts, and/or teams, for example, via electronic mail or through thecloud. In certain embodiments, users, accounts, and/or teams can receivethese notifications and/or instructions through a uniquely assignedemail address.

Referring specifically to FIG. 38D, in certain embodiments, firstportion 381821 can include a first menu of user-selectable choices,including one or more of the following choices: Prepare Teams DefineAdministrators and Manage teams (i.e., a first set of choices). Inanother embodiment (not shown), first portion 381821 can include a firstmenu of user-selectable choices, including a Define Roles andPermissions choice; an Add/Remove Members choice; and Assign Members toRoles choice; and an Authorize and Inform Members choice, i.e., a secondset of choices. Certain features and/or particular embodiments of thesechoices are described in additional detail in conjunction with FIGS. 38Aand 38B, above.

One feature of the admin console module allows users to prepare anddefine teams. For example, regarding the first menu, in response to aselection of the Prepare Teams choice, the second menu ofuser-selectable choices includes one or more previously added teams.Previously defined teams can be viewed in this aspect and additionalteams can be created and/or defined. Teams can be defined, andpermissions can be assigned, based on role, experiment type, user, etc.The previously added teams may have been added by the same user, e.g.,an administrator, or by other users who have access to the admin consolemodule, e.g., with appropriate permissions.

In addition to displaying previously added teams, in response to aselection of the Prepare Teams choice, the second menu ofuser-selectable choices is adapted to receive one or more new teams toadd among the one or more previously added team. These new members canbe added, for example, by a user manually entering the information intothe MUI through an input device, such as a keyboard, touchscreen, etc.Further, new teams can be added through an automated process, such aswith a barcode reader, or an input file that contains a list of one ormore of the new teams the user wishes to add. In one example, the teamname can be preassigned.

Once teams have been added, in response to the Prepare Teams choice, theuser can add, modify, remove, or otherwise define certain aspects of oneor more of the teams. Referring specifically to FIG. 38H, for example,in response to the Prepare Teams choice, the first portion 381821 can beadapted to display the previously entered teams in a second menu ofuser-selectable choices. In the embodiment provided in this figure, theuser has selected Team3, as designated by the choice being representedby all capital letters, although a user's selection can be depicted inother manners, for example, any of those described herein for displayinga particular choice in a more predominate fashion as described ingreater detail above. In this embodiment, the second portion 381830 isadapted to display one or more of a number of available teams defined, anumber of available seats assigned, a total number of available teams,and a total number of available seats as additional information. In theembodiment shown in this figure, this may be displayed as TeamAvailability Information 381831. Although particular numbers of teamsdefined, total teams, seats assigned, and total seats are depicted inthis embodiment, other examples, e.g., totals, are contemplated as well.As users add, modify, and/or remove teams and seats, the numbersprovided in the Team Availability Information 381831 will varyaccordingly and will be updated as such. Further, certain users, e.g.,an administrator, can override and/or change the totals defined.

The example in FIG. 38H shows first menu 381829 having been moved fromthe first portion 381821 to the second portion 381830 as a previousmenu. In this embodiment, the first menu 381829 illustrates the firstset of choices, with the “Prepare” choice highlighted as past-selected.In response to a user's selection of the “Define” choice within thefirst menu (which, in this example, equates to the Define Administratorsitem from the first menu when the first menu was displayed in the firstportion 381821), a second menu of user-selectable choices of usernamesand/or e-mail addresses for defining administrators may be displayed inthe first portion 381821. Further, the usernames and/or email addressesdisplayed are adapted to be deleted from the second menu ofuser-selectable choices in response to a user's deletion input.Moreover, in response to the Define Administrators choice, the secondmenu of user-selectable choices is adapted to receive new usernamesand/or email address to add among the previously added usernames and/oremail addresses. These aspects, e.g., the adding, deleting, user'sdeletion inputs, etc. for usernames and/or email addresses, aredescribed in greater detail below, e.g., in conjunction with Add/RemoveMember choice.

In an embodiment, in response to a selection of the DefineAdministrators choice, a menu of the one or more previously added teams,e.g., Team1, Team2, Team3, may be displayed in either the first portion381821 or the second portion 381830. In this example, the previouslyadded usernames and/or email addresses can be associated with aparticular team among the one or more previously added teams from thatmenu of choices. Further, in response to the Define Administratorchoice, the first portion is adapted to display an execution menu havingan Authorize and Email choice. With this feature, authorizations and/orteam-assignment information is adapted to be transmitted to thepreviously added email addresses in response to a selection of theAuthorize and Email Install Instructions choice. This Authorize andEmail choice is described in greater detail below in conjunction withFIG. 38G, e.g., as applied to the Authorization Summary 381828 describedbelow. Just as the Authorization Summary 381828 relates to providingauthorization, instructions, and/or notification vis-à-vis user'sdefined roles, the Authorization Email choice described in conjunctionwith the Define Administrators features relates to authorization,instructions, and/or notification of teams and administrator functions.By utilizing the Define Administrators feature, users can establishand/or create teams based on particular users, account, etc., so thatgroups of individuals can work collaboratively and/or cohesively as ateam,

In response to a selection of, for example, a particular team from thesecond menu and a specific action from a third menu, the first portion381821 can be adapted to display two or more subsections ofuser-selectable choices, e.g., from successive hierarchical menus.Regarding the multiple subsection embodiments, as illustrated in FIG.38E, three subsections can be displayed in the first portion 381821,including first subsection 381824, second subsection 381825, and thirdsubsection 381826, respectively. In certain embodiments, theuser-selectable choices available in these subsections will depend uponthe section from the first menu, e.g., the original three choicesdiscussed previously in connection with FIG. 38D. In other embodiments,the choices are static, so that the user can be presented with the samechoices no matter which choice was previously selected. In the exampleshown in FIG. 38E, the choices available are successive hierarchicallevels below the first menu, in which many teams may have been selected,the second menu, in which a particular team was selected, and a thirdmenu, in which define roles/permissions was selected. Although threesubsections are depicted in this example, fewer or greater numbers ofsubsections of user-selectable choices can be adapted to be displayed aswell. Further, their display configuration is not necessarily limited tothe horizontal arrangement illustrated in is figure, as otherconfiguration, such as those provided by way of example herein, e.g.,vertical, concentric, etc., are contemplated as well.

In response to the user-selectable choices available in the multiplesubsections, the user-selectable choices displayed in one or more of theother subsections can change depending on the previous selection.Specifically, one feature of the admin console is to define roles ofindividual users and/or teams, and to assign permissions to those one ormore users and or teams. Teams can be formed, and permissions can beassigned based on role, experiment type, user, etc. These actions can beperformed through the Define Roles and Permissions menu. For example, inresponse to a selection of the Define Roles and Permissions choice, thefirst subsection 381824 of user-selectable choices can include one ormore of the following choices: Lab Manager, Designer, Associate,Operator (Base), and Maintenance Tech (Base). In this particularembodiment, if the user selects the one or more of the Lab Manager,Designer, or Associate choices, the second subsection 381825 ofuser-selectable choices can include one or more of the followingchoices: Analysis Method, Assay Method, Experiment, Assay Engine, AuditTrail, Maintenance, Reader, and System.

In contrast, if the user selects the one or more of the Operator (Base),and Maintenance Tech (Base) choices, the second subsection 381825 ofuser-selectable choices can include one or more of the followingchoices: Assay Engine, Audit Trail, Maintenance, Reader, System.User-selectable options displayed in the third, fourth, etc. subsectionscan further depend on the choices made from choices previously made fromone or more of the of the other subsections. For example, in response toa selection of an Analysis Method choice from the second subsection381825, the third subsection 381826 of user-selectable choices caninclude a Run Analysis Method choice. Similarly, in response to aselection of the Assay Method choice from the second subsection 381825,the third subsection 381826 of user-selectable choices can include a RunAssay Method choice. Still further, in other examples, the thirdsubsection 381826 can include multiple user-selectable choices. By wayof example, in response to a selection of the Experiment choice from thesecond subsection 381825, the third subsection 381826 can include thefollowing choices: Create Experiment, Edit Layout, Exclude/Include DataPoints, Export Data Table, Export Sample Result Table, and ViewExperiment. Additional exemplary, non-limiting embodiments are presentedbelow.

In response to a selection of the Assay Engine choice from the secondsubsection 381825, the third subsection 381826 can include the followingchoices: Export Data Table; Modify Instrument Settings; OverrideMesoscale Diagnostics Kit Lot Assignment; Retry Inventory Validation;Run Instrument; and Show ECL for Unverified Run. In response to aselection of the Audit Trail choice from the second subsection 381825,the third subsection 381826 can a include a View Audit Trail App choice.In response to a selection of the Maintenance choice from the secondsubsection 381825, the third subsection 281826 can include the followingchoices: Run Maintenance; Run Maintenance Method; and View MaintenanceRecords. In response to a selection of the Reader choice from the secondsubsection 381825, the third subsection 381826 can include the followingchoices: Manage Database; Modify Instrument Settings; and RunInstrument. In response to a selection of the System choice from thesecond subsection 381825, the third subsection 381826 can include thefollowing choices: Modify System Settings; and Unlock App Locked by AnyUser. The foregoing examples are non-limiting, as other user-selectablechoices can be made available for display as well through the multiplesubsections of the first portion. In some embodiments, one or more ofthe subsections and/or user-selectable choices within the one or moresubsections can be user-customizable, e.g., by an administrator, teamleader and/or member, user with permission, etc.

Another feature of the admin console module is to add and/or removemembers, such as from a team or other grouping of one or more usersand/or accounts. Teams can be formed, and permissions can be assigned,based on role, experiment type, user, etc. These actions can beperformed through the Add/Remove Members choice. For example, inresponse to a selection of the Add/Remove Members choice, a first orsecond portion of the MUI (FIG. 38H, 381830) displays a menu includingpreviously added usernames and/or email addresses. These previouslyadded usernames and/or email addresses could have been added by the sameuser or by other users who have access to the admin console module. Inan embodiment, the usernames and/or email addresses can be modified ordeleted in response to a user's deletion input, assuming the useraccessing them has the appropriate permissions, either by overwritingthe previously entered information or by making a selection, e.g.,clicking a portion of the MUI display 206, such as an “x”, to remove theusername and/or email address entirely. In other embodiments, any userlogged into the admin console module can modify or delete the usernamesand/or email addresses regardless of permissions. The previously addedusernames and/or email addresses, and the ones that have been modifiedcan then later be associated with particular teams, accounts,instruments, etc. through the admin console module.

Turning to the embodiment depicted in FIG. 38F, in response to user'sdeletion input (as described above), the first portion 381821 is adaptedto display a confirmation choice 381827 before removing one or more theusers and/or teams. A similar confirmation choice is described below inconjunction with the reader module (e.g., FIG. 43F) for issuing a stopinstrument command. In the context of the admin console module, asimilar confirmation process can be employed with regard to deleting oneor more the users and/or teams. The confirmation choice (FIG. 38F,381827) can be adapted to be displayed to provide one or more users withthe ability to confirm whether they want to delete the current user froma particular team, account, roles, etc. When this Confirmation choice381827 is displayed, the user can be presented with a choice as towhether he wishes to delete the selected user, for this example the useris represented by the user@email.com email address. In this example, theuser can either select “Cancel” from the menu, thereby terminating thedecision to remove this member, or select “OK,” thereby removing themember. These options are merely exemplary as other choices and/orcommand prompts are contemplated as well.

In addition to deleting and modifying members, in response to theAdd/Remove Members choice at a third menu, the first portion 381821 maybe configured to display an execution menu for receiving new usernamesand/or email addresses to add among the previously added usernamesand/or email addresses. These new members can be added, for example, bya user manually entering the information into the MUI display 206through an input device, such as a keyboard, touchscreen, etc. Further,new members can be added through an automated process, such as with abarcode reader, or an input file that contains a list of one or more ofthe new members the user wishes to add.

Another feature of the admin console module is to assign members toroles, e.g., based on title, responsibility, application performed, etc.These actions can be performed through the Assign Members to Roleschoice at a third menu. For example, in response to a selection of thischoice, an execution menu of user-selectable items may includepreviously added usernames and/or email addresses displayed in a firstsubsection 381824. These previously added usernames and/or emailaddresses can, for example, be displayed in a similar manner as to thosedescribed in conjunction with the Add/Remove Members choice, above. Inresponse to Assign Members to Roles choice, the second subsection 381825can include one or more of the following role-assignment choices: LabManager, Designer, Associate, Operator (Base), and Maintenance Tech(Base). These are merely exemplary and additional and/or hybrid rolescan be included in addition to or in place of these particular roles. Inone embodiment, in response to selecting the Assign Members to Roleschoice, first subsection, FIG. 38E, 381824, can include the previouslyentered username and/or email address, and second subsection, FIG. 38E,381825, can include the role-assignment choices, such as the fiveprovided above. In this embodiment, a one-to-one correspondence can bedisplayed between the username and/or email address and its respectiverole assignments. In this regard, selections from the first and secondsubsections (FIG. 38E, 381824 and 381825, respectively) are adapted tocreate an association among one or more of the previously addedusernames and/or email addresses with one or more of the role-assignmentchoices. For example, if the user selects a first username, the secondsubsection (FIG. 38E, 381825) can display all the roles that particularuser is currently assigned. Additionally, the second subsection (FIG.38E, 381825) can display additional roles for which that particular useris not currently assigned. This is described in greater detail below inconjunction with FIG. 38G.

Whether the user is designated to a particular role can, for example, bedisplayed through an indicator associated with each role to indicatewhether the user is assigned (or not assigned) to that particular role.The indicator can include, for example, a checkbox, although otherindicators are contemplated as well, such as text-based indicators,e.g., an “x,” “1,” “0,” etc. In the checkbox embodiment, a box can bedisplayed as unchecked if that user is not currently assigned that thatparticular role, and the box can be checked, or otherwise marked in somefashion, if that user is currently assigned to that particular role. Themarking or checking can occur, for example, by a user's input, e.g.,mouse click, touchscreen, etc. In this example, the user accessing theadmin console module can select and deselect one or more roleassignments, by adding, removing, etc. roles to be associated with thegiven user, through the interaction with the MUI display 206. Notably,the marking or checking selection process described with regard to thisparticular aspect of the admin console module can be applied to otherselections from within this module, or any other module and/oruser-selectable choices described herein.

Another feature of the admin console module is to authorizeuser-specific roles and inform those users of the roles for which theyhave been assigned. These actions can be performed through the Authorizeand Inform choice. As described in greater detail in conjunction withFIG. 38E, an association among one or more of the users, e.g., by way oftheir usernames and/or email addresses, can be created with one or moreof the role-assignment choices. In one embodiment, the association ofone or more these users to their one or more roles can be displayed inresponse to a selection of the Authorize and Inform choice. Turning tothe embodiment depicted in FIG. 38G, an Authorization Summary 381828 canbe displayed, for example, in the first portion of the MUI display 206)in response to the Authorize and Inform choice, such that a table iscreated, although other structures and/or formats are contemplated aswell, that summarizes those assignments. In this embodiment, two columnsare created, e.g., a User column and a Roles column, although otheradditional columns are contemplated as well, that provide a one-to-onecorrespondence of user to assigned role, although other correspondencesare contemplated as well. The rows depicted in this example eachrepresent an individual user, although teams, accounts, etc. could beincluded as well. Additionally, the Authorization Summary 381828 isadapted to display an Authorize and Email Install Instructions choice,located at the lower portion of the Authorization Summary 381828,although it is not limited to this embodiment. In response to a user'sselection of the Authorize and Email Install Instructions choice, therole-assignment information and/or instructions are adapted to betransmitted to the previously added email addresses, or alternativelythrough the cloud. Thus, by selecting the transmit Authorize and EmailInstall Instructions choice, the user can inform one or more of theusers of the role or roles for which they have been selected, and/orprovide those users with information and instructions as it relates totheir assigned roles.

Accordingly, an Admin Console MUI provides an operator with a wide arrayof access control abilities, e.g., by using teams, individual userpermissions, role assignments, specific permissions, and otherfunctionality. The Admin Console is not specific to a laboratory settingand may be applied for adjusting user permissions in further settingssuch as manufacturing settings, parental controls over computer andmedia use, and others.

In a particular embodiment, in response to a user's selection of theadvanced context menu selector 381822 (FIG. 38D), the advanced contextmenu 381832 (FIG. 391) can be outputted to the MUI display 206. Theadvanced context menu 381832 may include various commands and/oruser-selectable choices. For example, with specific reference to FIG.38I, this menu can include an Resend Install Instructions command381833. This command, when selected, will resend installationinstructions, e.g., to install the application that runs one or more ofthe modules as described herein, to one or more selected users,including the user who selected this command. Those instructions can betransmitted via electronic mail, e.g., to the users' email addresses, orover the cloud. The Import command 381834, when selected allow the usersto import names and/or email addresses of users, account information,team information, etc. without the need to manually input thatinformation. Further the Change Team Name command 381835 and ChangeAccount Name command can be used to allow the user to change the team oraccount, respectively, for one or more users, accounts, and/or teams.Finally, the Change Password command 381837 allows the user to changethe password for her account. In other embodiments, depending onpermissions, this command will allow a user, such as an administrator,to change the password of one or more additional users as well.

In FIG. 39A is an embodiment of a user experience flow through an adminaudit trail module beginning with administrator app at 391900 running onan admin's computer with each step through a user interface numberedsequentially 1 through ‘n’ to represent the stepwise flow from begin (1)to end (‘n’) for an admin as depicted in administrator app at 391900being labelled “1.” as the first step, also, as an admin works throughthe flow of a user interface they could easily back track to one or moreprevious steps. The user experience flow of FIG. 39A may employ a MUIfor interface purposes as discussed herein. At 391901 an admin canselect a module to access. In this illustration, an admin audit trailmodule is selected, and the MUI transitions the application to start at391902 providing an admin a first menu including options to view alladmin events at 391903, view account admin events at 391904, or viewteam-specific events at 391905. On selection of an option the MUItransitions to a selected second menu at 391903, 391904, or 391905. At391903 only an account admin is presented all events captured across theentire account including, but not limited to, account and team-specificactions taken by every admin with each event including, but not limitedto, username of originator, date and timestamp, the source, andinformation pertaining the event as returned from a service request madevia the cloud platform. At 391904 only an account admin is presented allaccount admin events captured across the entire account including onlyoverall account admin events for account actions taken by every adminwith each event including but not limited to username of originator,date and timestamp, the source, and information pertaining the event asreturned from a service request made via the cloud platform. At 391905either an account admin or a team admin is presented all team-specificevents captured for each team one team at a time for which an admin hasadministrative rights including team-specific administrative actionstaken by every team-specific admin and account admin with each eventincluding but not limited to username of originator, date and timestamp,the source, and information pertaining to the event as returned from aservice request made via the cloud platform, wherein, an admin couldeasily transition to view other team-specific events without leaving theview at 391905. The menus at 391903, 391904, and 391905 each enable auser to sort the view in forward or reverse ordering by username, dateand timestamp, source, or information about the event. The menus at391903, 391904, or 391905 each allow an admin to access an executionmenu permitting export of the entire collection of events provided at391903, 391904, or 391905 to a file format easily importable to othercomputer applications like Excel, Word, and/or any other computerapplication, such as, CSV, tab-delimited text, JSON, XML, and/or anyother format. At 391903, 391904, or 391905 an admin may use an executionmenu to export the entire collection of events provided at 391903,391904, or 391905 to a computer operating system mechanism used forcopying and pasting content from one computer application to anothercomputer application often referred to as a clipboard. Based on theexecution menu selection, appropriate event export function (e.g.,391906, 391907, 391908) can be executed for exporting the event orevents. At interfaces 5 (e.g., 5 a, 5 b, 5 c) the information and/ordata related to the events specified at interfaces 4 (e.g., 4 a, 4 b, 4c) can exported. For example, in 391906, all the events from interface 4a can be exported. Similarly, in 391907 and 391908, account events andteam-specific events can be exported, respectively. This exportation canbe provided in a user-readable format or in a file format easilyimportable to other computer applications such as, without limitation,Excel, Word, and/or any other computer application, such as, CSV,tab-delimited text, JSON, XML, and/or any other format.

Further examples of the audit trail feature are disclosed with respectto FIGS. 39B-39E. The audit trail module can be adapted to provide asummary of information as it relates to one or more users' and/or teams'interactions with the UI display specifically, or more generally basedon actions that users have performed while logged into their accounts.For example, the audit trail module can include the usernames and/oremail addresses of the users that have logged in to an account, the timeof each login, the IP address of the computing device from which theusers accessed their account, which instruments the users used whilelogged in, etc.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 39B, the audit trail module can beaccessed through the advanced context selector 381822 as part of theadvanced context menu 381832. In this example, the advanced context menu381832 is adapted to be displayed in response to a selection of anadvanced context selector 381822 when outputted to the UI display381823. When displayed, advanced context menu 381832 can include aplurality of commands and/or user-selectable choices arranged in a menuthat may take the form of various configurations, e.g., vertically,horizontally, etc. In addition, one or more menu dividers 391910 can beemployed to group and/or divide particular commands and/or choices. Forexample, the menu divider 391911 can be used to group commands on oneportion of the advanced context menu 381832 and user-selectable choiceson the other. In other embodiments, one or more of these dividers canused to group and or/divide according to other attributes or traits ofthe menu items. In some embodiments, the location, grouping, and/ordivision of the menu items can be user-customizable. Advanced contextselector 381822 is described in greater detail above, thus, details areomitted here aside from examples and/or embodiments provided below asthey relate to the audit trail module feature.

In a particular embodiment, in response to a user's selection of theadvanced context selector 381822, the advanced context menu 381832 canbe outputted to the MUI display 206, e.g., by the menu manager 1054. Theadvanced context menu 381832 can include various commands and/oruser-selectable choices. For example, with specific reference to FIG.39C, this menu can include an export command 391911, or a command tocopy data to a clipboard (not shown). It further can includeuser-selectable choices including an admin console choice 391912, which,when selected, can allow a user to access the admin console module, asdescribed in greater detail above in conjunction with that module, or anadmin audit trail choice 391913, which, when selected, will allow a userto access the audit trail module described herein. Other commands and/oruser-selectable choices are available to users as well in the advancedcontext menu 381832, for example, and with reference to FIG. 39C, Termsof Use 391914, Privacy Policy 391915, and a command to log the users outof their accounts, e.g., Log Out command 391916. Although the advancedcontext selector 381822 is depicted in FIG. 39B near the top leftportion of MUI display 206, with the advanced context menu 381832directly below it, other configurations are contemplated as well.

With specific reference to FIGS. 39C and 39D, in response to a selectionof Admin Audit Trail choice 391913, the first portion 391920 of the MUI206 is adapted to display audit information 391917, divided into one ormore fields 391918. The audit information 391917 can be arranged as atable, or in the alternative, as a list, or any other suitablearrangement of data. The embodiment illustrated by FIG. 39D depicts thedisplayed audit information 391917 as including fields 391918 as thecolumns of a table, with each entry provided vertically in rows. Fields391918 of audit information 391917 can include, for example, one or moreof a timestamp, a username and/or email address, module, record ID,type, message, category, code, and IP address of a user.

The timestamp can include when (e.g., date and/or time) the audit wasgenerated. In one example, this field can be presented in MM/dd/yyyyHH:mm:ss format, although other formats are contemplated as well,including those that convey more or less information than thisparticular format (e.g., just recording the date, but not the time). Thetimestamp can also record each instance a particular user logged intoher account, how long she was logged into for, and when she logged out.This information can be tracked by either the username, email address,and/or any other user, team, and/or account indicator. For example, theUsername field will record the username of the user that was logged inwhen the event was generated. The module field can include the modulethat generated the audit event, e.g., Reader, Experiment, etc. In thismanner, this field can be populated with one or more of the modules thatwere utilized during that particular log-in instance. For example, if auser utilized the Assay Method and Experiment modules, this field wouldindicate the same. In some embodiments, multiple modules can bedisplayed on a single row for that particular log-in instance, and inother embodiments, audit information 391917 can be arranged acrossmultiple rows, one for each module that particular user utilized whilelogged in.

The Record ID field may be included to show the ID of the recordassociated with the audit event. By way of example, if an experimentrelates to the use of plates, the Record ID can include the platebarcode. It further can include information as it relates to the whatexperiments, assays, and/or functions a particular user performed whilelogged in, more generally. For example, it can include the file name,either default or user-customizable, associated with a particularexperiment. In other examples, it can include information relating toactions performed while analyzing and assay plate, such the plate'sloading, reading, ejection, etc. The Type field can include the type ofaudit event including, for example, Info, Action, Warning, or Error.This field can relate to other information summarized in the auditinformation 391917, for example, whether the user received a warningand/or an error while logged in. Or it can include additionalinformation related to the users' actions and/or interactions with theapplication, equipment, and/or experiments. Further, it can convey thatan analysis was performed manually or automatically, etc. The Messagefield can include one or more of a static, dynamic, and/oruser-customizable message that relates to the audit event. A separatefield is provided for the category, e.g., Category field, of the auditevent, e.g., record, system, equipment, etc. In one example, theCategory field provide additional characterizations of the messagesprovided in the Message field.

Further, the IP Address field can provide the IP address of thecomputing device, e.g., laptop, desktop, tablet, etc., from which theusers accessed their account, which instruments the users used whilelogged in, etc. The Code field can be related to the IP Address in someembodiments, or unrelated in others, whereby a unique numerical value,such as an integer, for identifying the event. In some embodiments, thisidentifier can be predetermined. In other examples, they can beuser-defined, such as by an administrator. In the latter example, theCode field can be customized to accommodate one or more users' specificneeds. Additional fields such as permissions, team identifiers, etc. arecontemplated as well. Thus, the audit information 391917 can be arrangedin such a manner that associates one or more of these fields to providea trail of information that summarizes the tasks, equipment, and/orinstruments associated with one or more users' experiences while loggedinto their accounts.

In several embodiments, the amount of information displayed can varydepending on the user's preferences. For example, a user can filter theaudit information 391917 such that the information limited to one ormore users, accounts, and/or teams, e.g., previously added teams byutilizing the Admin Console module as described above. An example ofthis is depicted in the embodiment shown in FIG. 39D. An audit menu391919 can be outputted to MUI display 206, shown here by way of examplein the second portion 391921 of MUI display 206, that can be used tofilter this information. In this embodiment, a user has selected tofilter the audit information 391917 by team, which is illustrated bydepicting the “Team1” selection in all capital letters in thisparticular embodiment, although a user's selection can be depicted inother manners, for example, any of those described throughout fordisplaying a particular choice in a more predominate fashion asdescribed in greater detail herein. In this example, only User1 andUser4 are members of this particular team (i.e., Team1), and, thus, theaudit information 391917 has been filtered by the that team. In otherembodiments, all audit information can be made available for display, oruser can narrow the audit information to be displayed by one or moreusers, accounts, teams, and/or instruments. In one example, the auditmenu 391919 can be outputted to MUI display 206 in response to a commandto display an audit menu 391919 by selecting the Admin Audit Trailchoice.

In addition to being displayed by the MUI display 206, the auditinformation 391917 can be copied and/or exported. For example, inresponse to an export command 391911 (FIG. 39C), the audit information391917 can be outputted to an export file, such as a Microsoft Excel® orother data processing and/or spreadsheet software. Alternatively, it canbe provided in a comma-separated file, e.g., CSV file. In response tothe export command 391911, the requested file containing auditinformation 391917 can be exported to a user, either by the userselecting and/or viewing the exported file. Alternatively, it can beexported by emailing it to the user and/or transmitting it over thecloud. Further, in response to the copy to clipboard command (e.g., asdepicted within the advanced context menu 381832 as shown FIG. 39B), allor a subset of the data including the audit information 391917 can betemporarily stored to a buffer, such that the user can later accessand/or view it (e.g., using a cut-and-paste command). In this example,the user is not confined to the formats for which the data are presentedin the exported file, providing users with the ability to customize thedata format and/or utilize one or more applications of their choice toaccess, modify, and delete those data.

In FIG. 40 is an embodiment of software modules in an analytical userapp 402000 forming the primary user interface experience for analyticalwork typically, but not limited to, using data generated through the useof instrumentation with each module using services provided by cloudplatform 402006 to create, read, update, and/or delete any and all datarelevant to each module's processing, as well as any other servicesneeded for each module's processing, wherein experiment module 402001would be the active module by default when the analytical user app402000 starts. As discussed above, the analytical user app 402000 mayemploy a MUI supplied by a methodical user interface control system 1102for interface purposes. The experiment module 402001, assay methodmodule 402002, analysis method module 402003, audit trail module 402004,and the system functions 402005 may all employ a MUI for user interfacepurposes. An analysis method module 402003 provides a construct referredto as an analysis method to be used in post-read analysis of signalcollected from a test plate by a plate reader, wherein an analysismethod is used to configure an existing process and/or create a newprocess by which data collected from tested samples usinginstrumentation and/or consumables can be transformed through analgorithm configured by associated parameters into a quantitative orqualitative determination. Assay method module 402002 is used toconfigure an existing process and/or create a new process by whichsamples will be processed using consumables and/or instrumentation togenerate data from the samples under test so they may be appropriatelyanalyzed using a prescribed analysis method. Experiment module 402001 isused to design a test of one or more samples using one or more selectedassay method(s) to collect the data from the samples through the use ofinstrumentation and/or consumables that may be reviewed and analyzed toensure the experiment ran properly, as well as to learn from the datacollected from the tested samples. Audit trail module 402004 is used toview all events generated through use of the analytical computing systemby users from the same team who are creating, modifying, and/or deletingelectronic records associated with the analytical computing system. Thecollection of system functions 402005 provides typical utilities insupport of use of the system such as, but not limited to, logging off,viewing help information, viewing user guide, viewing legal noticesand/or documents, changing software configuration, changing userpassword, and/or other utilities. The collection of system function402005 may be provided as a separate MUI module and/or a series ofsoftware protocols that operate alongside the other discussed MUImodules. A user can log into the analytical user app 402000 throughsystem functions 402005 using services provided by cloud platform402006. If authentication of a user by login service on cloud platform402005 the service returns that a user has more than one account and/orteam, a user will be required to select the default account and/or team,but if a user does not belong to more than one account and/or team, theservice on the cloud platform 402006 would auto-assign a user to thesole account and team for that user. On completing login, the user landsat start of the experiment module 402001 and begins using the analyticaluser app 402000 as they need. In the alternative, the analytical userapp 402000 can assist in performing other experiments in addition to orin place of the assay and/or plate-based experiments described herein.

In FIG. 41 is an embodiment of a user experience flow through ananalysis method module beginning with analytical user app at 412100running on a user's computer with each step through a user interfacenumbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ to represent the stepwise flow frombegin (1) to end (‘n’) for a user as depicted in analytical user app at412100 being labelled “1.” as the first step. The experience flow ofFIG. 41 may be provided via a MUI as discussed herein. At some point inthe flow a user could have alternate flows based on a decision they areto make as denoted by a lowercase letter after a numbered step asdepicted at 412112, 412113, and 412114 where a user chooses betweenconfiguring calibration curve at 412112, background correction at412113, and/or limits of detection at 412114, also as a user worksthrough the flow of a user interface they could easily back track to oneor more previous steps through the use of an historical portion of theMUI. At 412101 a user may select a user interface mechanism presentingone or more options including, but not limited to, module-specificfunctions, modules to select, and/or system functions being either ahorizontal menu and/or toolbar, a vertical menu and/or toolbar, ascroll-wheel menu and/or toolbar, a dropdown menu and/or toolbar, akeyboard function, a voice-activated command, and/or any other like userinterface mechanism to choose an option, in this case choosing analysismethod module and transitioning the application to start at 412102. At412103 a user is presented one option to design an analysis method and auser on choosing to do so transitions to design at 412104. At 412104 afirst menu is presented, allowing the user to select between menu itemsanalysis method 412105, calibration curve 412112, background correction412113, limits of detection 412114, and confirm 412115. Upon selectinganalysis method at 412105 a second menu is presented including optionsto select from recent analysis methods at 412106 or available analysismethods at 412107. A default may be recent analysis method at 412106.The MUI may auto-transition to all analysis methods at 412109 if recentanalysis methods at 412106 is empty. At 412106, on selection of recentanalysis methods, a user is presented a configurable amount, for exampletwenty five, of the most recently used analysis methods at 412108 asreturned from a service request made via the cloud platform.Alternatively, selection of available at 412107 presents to a user a newexecution menu of all analysis methods at 412109 as returned from aservice request made via the cloud platform with the analysis methodsorganized by system-provided default analysis methods and user-providedanalysis methods, enabling a user to browse the various analysis methodsand to select the analysis method of choice. On selection of an analysismethod at the execution menus 412108 or 412109 the user interfacereturns to the first menu at 412104, presenting the options ofconfiguring calibration curve at 412112, background correction at412113, and limits of detection at 412114. In embodiments, calibrationcurve at 412112 is the default, and the MUI is configured to walk theuser through the subsequent menus 412112, 412113, and 412114 as the userexecutes a selection in each. On selection of calibration curve at412112 a user is given options on the view to select an algorithm fromthe available set being system-provided algorithms 4PL, 5PL, Linear,Log-Log, Exponential, or any other algorithm potentially provided by thesystem, as well as, any user-provided algorithms.

The 4PL algorithm may be calculated as

$y = {b_{1} + \frac{b_{2} + b_{1}}{1 + \left( {x/b_{3}} \right)^{b_{4}}}}$

where y is the response signal from a plate reader, x is theconcentration, b1 is maximum response plateau or calculated top, b2 isminimum response plateau or calculated bottom, b3 is concentration atwhich 50% of the maximal response is observed or calculated mid-point,and b4 is the slope or shape parameter or calculated Hill Slope

The 5PL algorithm may be calculated as

$y = {b_{1} + \left( \frac{b_{2} + b_{1}}{1 + \left( {x/b_{3}} \right)^{b_{4}}} \right)^{b_{5}}}$

where y is the response signal from a plate reader, x is theconcentration, b1 is maximum response plateau or calculated top, b2 isminimum response plateau or calculated bottom, b3 is concentration atwhich 50% of the maximal response is observed or calculated mid-point,and b4 is the slope or shape parameter or calculated Hill Slope, and b5is asymmetry factor or calculated asymmetry factor.

The Linear algorithm may be calculated as

y=mx b

where y is the response signal from a plate reader, x is theconcentration, m is the slope or calculated Hill Slope, and b is y-axisintercept or calculated y intercept.

The Log-Log algorithm may be calculated as

log₁₀(y)=m(log₁₀(x))+b

where y is the response signal from a plate reader, x is theconcentration, m is the slope or calculated Hill Slope, and b is y-axisintercept or calculated y intercept.

The Exponential algorithm may be calculated as

y=ae ^(bx)

where y is the response signal from a plate reader, x is theconcentration, a is plate reader response signal at minimum response orcalculated y intercept, and b is a constant describing the magnitude ofincrease or decrease or Hill Slope; with selection of an algorithmmaking it the default for the analysis method being configured.

On selection of an algorithm in calibration curve at 412112, a user maythen define a weighting factor for the chosen algorithm to be used incalculations to compensate for the differences in magnitude of theresiduals at low and high analyte concentrations with options 1/y², 1/y,or none; then a user may choose input signal with options to use fromthe calibrators the raw input signal or the background-corrected signal;and finally a user defines to calculate replicates either individuallyor as an average of the replicates.

At 412113 a user is provided a view for selection of backgrounddetection configuration provides options for a user each forcalibrators, controls, and unknowns (i.e., samples under test) where auser may choose to do no signal correction or in calculating a correctedsignal the software would adjust the raw signal from a plate reader bysubtracting or dividing it by the background count of the plate reader.At 412114 the selection of limits of detections provides options for auser in determining the limits of detection using the standard deviationof the high and low calibrators or as a percentage of the ECL countsabove or below the high and low calibrators.

At 412115 selection of confirm by a user presents a user the option touse a system-provided name for the new analysis method or provide theirown name and accept the new analysis method for inclusion in the set ofuser-provided analysis methods with any changes to the analysis methodat 412112, at 412113, and/or at 412114 resulting in a service requestmade via the cloud platform creating a new analysis method as definedfor a user's current team database and a user transitioning at 412116back to start at 412102.

A user may also confirm at 412115 or, in any other step along the flow,reject their changes to the analysis method and return to start at412102 not creating a new analysis method. Although these embodimentsdescribe plate-based tests and/or experiments, the methods describedherein can be applied in the alternative to the review of otherexperiments and tests in the alternative.

In FIG. 42A is an embodiment of a user experience flow through an assaymethod module focused on designing an assay method beginning withbioanalytical user app at 922200 running on a user's computer with eachstep through a user interface numbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ torepresent the stepwise flow from begin (1) to end (‘n’) for a user asdepicted in bioanalytical user app at 922200 being labelled “1.” as thefirst step. The user experience flow of FIG. 42A may be implemented viaa MUI as discussed herein.

At 922201 a user may select a user interface mechanism presenting one ormore options including but not limited to module-specific functions,modules to select, and/or system functions being either a horizontalmenu and/or toolbar, a vertical menu and/or toolbar, a dropdown menuand/or toolbar, a keyboard function, a voice-activated command, and/orany other like user interface mechanism to choose an option, choosingassay method module. On selection of assay method at 922201 theapplication transitions at 922202 to the start of the assay methodmodule presenting at 922203 and at 922204 an option to design an assaymethod or review an assay method. If the user opts for design assay at922203, the flow continues as discussed below. FIG. 42B shows theprocess flow after 92204 is selected. On selection of design at 922203 auser may be presented a next menu including manual assay method at922206 and automated assay method at 922205.

Should the user select manual assay an assay method at 922206, they arepresented options to select from recent assay methods at 922207 oravailable assay methods at 922210. The default is recent assay methodsat 922207 and the MUI may autotransition to all assay methods at 922211,the recent assay methods are empty as returned from a service requestmade via the cloud platform. At 922207 on selection of recent assaymethods, a user is presented a configurable amount, for example twentyfive, of the most recently used assay methods at 922208 as returned froma service request made via the cloud platform. Alternatively, selectionof available assay methods at 922210 presents to a user all assaymethods at 922211 as returned from a service request made via the cloudplatform. The assay methods are organized by source, such as, but notlimited to an overall catalog of available assay methods, purchasedconsumables associated with available assay methods, and by eachusername those who have created new assay methods, then the consumablefamily that organizes assay methods based on a common use model, andthen assay method name, enabling a user to efficiently browse thevarious assay methods and to select the assay method to base their newassay method design.

On selection of a specific assay method at either 922208 or 922211 theuser interface transitions to 922213 to present the user the assayconfiguration on the test plate associated with the assay method asreturned from a service request made via the cloud platform, wherein theuser may alter the test plate and assay assignment using eitherpurchased assays or user-provided assays to various spots in a well onthe associated type of test plate, including being able to disabledesired assay assignments, and on completion of edits to the assayconfiguration a user will select layout at 922214 storing the changesvia web service(s) on the cloud platform before transitioning.

At 922214 a user is presented a graphical representation of a test plateand a visual representation of where on the test plate, i.e., whichspots in which wells, various types of samples are allocated, which iskey for properly processing an assay method on a test plate. In thelayout menu at 922214, the user is presented items to select previouslydefined layout of samples on a plate at 922215 or an edit layoutfunction at 922223. The previously defined layout selection at 922215provides recently used layouts at 922216 as a carousel of plates withthe sample layout and layout name being a configurable set of up to butnot intended to limit to 25 layouts or all available layouts at 922219.A user, may, from the select layout menu at 922215, also select tocreate a new layout from scratch at 922222, which advances the user tothe edit layout function at 922223.

On selecting a layout at 922217 or 922220 a user transitions back to922214 to see the selected layout. Anytime a user transitions to layoutat 922214 they may edit the layout via edit layout at 922223.

On choosing to edit layout at 922223, a user is presented a collectionof options of equal importance to enable a user efficiently navigatingto various options requiring attention. Thus, these options may bepresented as a series of concurrently adjustable menus. At 922224 a usermay configure parameters associated with calibrators used in the assaymethod, most notably, the number of calibrators and number of replicateswhich dictates how many wells on the test plate will be taken upcalibrators. At 922226 a user may configure parameters associated withcontrols used in the assay method, most notably, the number of controlsand number of replicates which dictates how many wells on the test platewill be taken up controls. At 922228 a user may configure parametersassociated with blanks used in the assay method representing theexpectation of very low signal purposefully, most notably, the number ofblanks and number of replicates which dictates how many wells on thetest plate will be taken up blanks. At 922229 a user may configureparameters associated with a samples used in the assay methodrepresenting a placeholder for samples that will be tested when thisassay method is used in an experiment, most notably, the number ofsamples and number of replicates which dictates how many wells on thetest plate will be taken up samples, by default samples take up allremaining wells on the plate after accounting for calibrators and/orcontrols and/or blanks but a user is enabled to set a specific number ator below the maximum number of unused wells on the test plate.

On completing configuration of the various types of samples that areexpected to be on a test plate for the assay method, a user at 922230may edit the layout of the different sample types on the test plate,manipulating where wells are located by either moving rows in totaland/or columns in total and/or moving individual sample types assignedto a well. A user may then select to define one or more groups at 922231to provide one or more name groups that subdivide a test plate into oneor more sub-plates each named as a user provides at 922231.

Once groups are defined at 922224, at 922226, at 922228, and at 922229each group may have a sub-definition associated with them per the numberof defined and named groups for which a user may configure or not one ormore of the prescribed sampled types, with an additional capability toassign to assign to one group the calibration curve of another group toallow sharing of calibrators across one or more groups on the plate andone more additional capability to assign blanks in one group to allowsharing of blanks across one or more groups on the plate. On completionof all of the edits under layout at 922214, a user may select a confirmoption at 922232. Although this option is shown as a submenu of the editlayout function at 922232, it may also be accessible as a submenu of thelayout function at 922214

At 922232 a user is presented a summary view of the layout for the assaymethod they have designed enabling a user to navigate to a previoussteps to alter any decisions they made in the process of designing thelayout and if all their decisions are in line with their expectationsthey would select confirm storing their layout via web service(s) to thecloud platform for future use in an experiment and on completion of theinvocation of web service(s) the MUI transitions back to the assay menuat 922213, where the user may further select assay analysis methods at922233.

At 922233 a user is presented the assignment of analysis methods toeither the assay method and/or the one or more assays assigned to theassay method with the option to select a particular analysis to canvasall assays in the assay method, that on selection automatically appliesthe chosen analysis method to all assays in the assay method. A user mayalso alter the analysis method for any or all individual assays in theassay method by choosing the analysis method assigned to an assay withthe user interface presenting the available system-default analysismethods as well as any user-provided analysis methods from which theuser chooses the desired analysis method for the assay. A user may usethis previously disclosed mechanism of analysis method selection forselecting an analysis method at the assay method level to assign thesame analysis method to all assays in the assay method.

On completion of analysis method assignment at 922233 a user may selectprotocol configuration at 922234 with the software automatically storingthe user's selections via web service(s) on the cloud platform beforetransitioning at 922234. At 922234 a user is presented the variousparameters associated with the processing of the assay method either ona coordinated-operation instrument or manually leveraging one or moreindividual-operation instrument. The parameter set would be instrumentspecific but could include but not intended to limit to incubationtime(s), wash cycle(s), read buffer incubation(s), reagent addition(s),and/or any other step in the processing of a protocol that could beparameterized and configured. In some embodiments, an assay method mayhave no protocol defined for it and therefore this step may be not shownto a user for an assay method with no protocol. On completion ofprotocol configuration at 922234 a user may select confirm at 922235,although this is shown as a submenu of the protocol menu at 922234, itmay also be accessible as a submenu of the assay menu at 922213, withthe software automatically storing the user's selections via webservice(s) on the cloud platform before transitioning at 922235. At theconfirmation menu of 922235 a user is presented a summary view of theassay method they have designed to confirm they made all the rightchoices, enabling a user to navigate to a previous steps to alter anydecisions they made in the process of designing the assay method and ifall their decision are in line with their expectations they may selectconfirm storing their assay method via web service(s) to the cloudplatform for future use in an experiment and on completion of theinvocation of web service(s) the user interface would transition back tostart at 922202.

In further embodiments, an assay method module may operate as follows. Afirst menu may be a design assay menu. Upon selection the design assaymenu is relocated to the historical portion and a second menu ispresented providing a user with an option to select a manual assaymethod or an automatic assay method.

Selecting manual assay method provides a third menu including recentassay methods and available assay methods as options.

Selecting recent assay method provides a third menu including names ofrecent assay methods. Selecting an assay name moves the assay to thehistorical portion and provides a new current assay design menuincluding “assay,” “layout,” “analysis method,” and “confirm,” menus.The assay menu provides, in sub-portions of the active portion, multiplesub-portions. A first sub-portion provides spot layout and lists ofassays by spot assignment (i.e., test sites) in the selected methodapplied to an editable list of analytes. The first sub portion mayinclude, test plate type on a horizontal wheel, e.g., 96 Wells 1 SmallSpot, 96 Wells 1 Small Spot High Bind, 96 Wells 1 Small Spot Q, 96 Wells1 Spot, 96 Wells 1 Spot High Bind, 96 Wells 1 Spot Q, 96 Wells 10 Spot,96 Wells 10 Spot High Bind, 96 Wells 10 Spot Q, 96 Wells 10 Spot Q HighBind. If a 10-plex plate is chosen in the first sub-portion, then amiddle sub-portion appears that lists 1-PLEX-10-PLEX. If a 10-plex plateis not chosen, then a right-side subportion appears that lists assays,which can be searchable depending on highlighted assay method orexistence of unassigned spot position in first subportion. The layoutmenu provides a plate layout showing where sample types are located. Theanalysis menu provides a subsequent menu having subportions allowing auser to select from a first sub portion listing assays in the selectedassay method and algorithm types for each assay in a second subportion.The confirm menu shows, in a first subportion a spot layout and list ofassays by spot assignment in selected assay method and, in a second subportion, assay method name, plate layout, and a confirm option.

Selecting available assay options provides a third menu showing multiplesubportions. The first subportion presented the options of assayspurchased from consumable manufacturer (“MSD Purchased”), available fromconsumable manufacturer (“MSD Catalog”), and usernames. The secondsubportion provides assay method types filtered by the highlighted itemin first subportion: Bio-dosimetry, Custom, Custom Sandwich Immunoassay,Immunogenicity, PQ, Pharmacokinetic, N-PLEX, S-PLEX, U-PLEX, U-PLEX DevPack, Utility, V-PLEX, where Utility is less than an entire assayprotocol performed by an automated instrument; e.g., wash, add readbuffer, read; or add read buffer, read. The third sub-portion providesassay methods filtered by highlighted item in first and secondsubportions. After selection of an assay method via this process, a newmenu is provided according to the assay design menu as described above.

If, at the second menu, the user selects automated assay method, theyare provided with a choice between recent assay methods and availableassay methods, as described above. The only difference in the “availableassay methods” flow as compared to the recent assay methods flow is inthe protocol menu, described below.

Selecting recent assay methods provides a third menu including names ofrecent assay methods. Selecting an assay name moves the assay to thehistorical portion and provides a new current assay design menuincluding “assay,” “layout,” “analysis method,” and “confirm,” menussimilar to those described above. The assay design menu also includes aprotocol menu option.

The protocol menu option provides options for a coating menu, blocking,capture, detection, detection incubation, and secondary detectionincubation. The coating menu provides options in a first subportion forEnable Coating, Wash Before Coating Step, Linker Volume, CaptureAntibody Volume, Stop Solution Volume, Coating Species Volume, Volume ofDiluent in Capture Blend, Coupled Antibody Volume in Blend, CoatingBlend Dispensed Per Well, Coupling Incubation Duration, StopperIncubation Duration, Coating Incubation Duration, with On/Off toggle oradapted to be editable to enter a number. The coating menu provides asecond subportion that appears for editing numbers related to the firstsubportion. The blocking menu provides a first subportion for EnableBlocking, Wash Before Blocking Step, Blocking Volume, BlockingIncubation Duration, with On/Off toggle or adapted to be editable toenter a number. The blocking menu provides a second subportion thatappears for editing numbers related to the first subportion. The capturemenu provides a first subportion: Assay Volume, Wash Before Test PlateIncubation, Sample Incubation Duration, Test Plate Incubation Duration,with On/Off toggle or adapted to be editable to enter a number. Thecapture menu provides a second subportion that appears for editingnumbers related to the first subportion. The detection menu provides afirst subportion: Detect Volume, Detection Incubation Duration, withOn/Off toggle or adapted to be editable to enter a number. The detectionmenu provides a second subportion that appears for editing numbersrelated to the first subportion. The detection incubation menu providesa first subportion: Wash Before Detection Step, Detection SpeciesVolume, Detection Incubation Duration, with On/Off toggle or adapted tobe editable to enter a number. The detection incubation menu provides asecond subportion that appears for editing numbers related to the firstsubportion. The secondary detection incubation menu provides a firstsubportion including Enable Secondary Detection, Wash Before SecondaryDetection Step, Secondary Detection Species Volume, Detection IncubationDuration, with On/Off toggle or adapted to be editable to enter anumber. The secondary detection incubation menu provides a secondsubportion that appears for editing numbers related to the firstsubportion. The read buffer menu provides a first subportion: ReadBuffer Volume, Read Buffer Incubation Duration, with On/Off toggle oradapted to be editable to enter a number. The read buffer menu providesa second subportion that appears for editing numbers related to thefirst subportion.

In FIG. 42B is an embodiment of a user experience flow through an assaymethod module focused on reviewing an assay method beginning withanalytical user app at 422200 running on a user's computer with eachstep through a user interface numbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ torepresent the stepwise flow from begin (1) to end (‘n’) for a user asdepicted in analytical user app at 421100 being labelled “1.” as thefirst step. The experience flow of FIG. 42B may be facilitated by a MUIas discussed herein. At 422201 a user may select a user interfacemechanism presenting one or more options including, but not limited to,module-specific functions, modules to select, and/or system functionsbeing either a horizontal menu and/or toolbar, a vertical menu and/ortoolbar, a scroll-wheel menu and/or toolbar, a dropdown menu and/ortoolbar, a scroll-wheel menu and/or toolbar, a keyboard function, avoice-activated command, and/or any other like user interface mechanismto choose an option, choosing assay method module. On selection of assaymethod at 422201 the MUI transitions at 422202 to the start of the assaymethod module presenting a first menu including options at 422203 and at422204 an option to design an assay method or review an assay methodrespectively. The illustrated workflow shows the results of a selectionof 422204, to review an assay method, with the user in this casechoosing to review at 422204.

On selection of review at 422204 a user is requested to choose ananalysis method at 422206 from a next menu presenting options includingrecent assay methods at 422207 or available assay methods at 422208. Thedefault may be recent assay method at 422207. The MUI mayauto-transition to all assay methods at 422208, if recent at 422207 isempty as returned from a service request made via the cloud platform. Onselection of recent assay methods at 422207, a user is presented aconfigurable amount, for example twenty five, of the most recently usedassay methods at 422209 as returned from a service request made via thecloud platform. Alternatively, selection of available at 422208 presentsto a user all assay methods at 422211 as returned from a service requestmade via the cloud platform. The assay methods may be organized by thesource they are from, including, but not limited to, an overall catalogof available assay methods, purchased consumables associated withavailable assay methods, and by each username those who have created newassay methods, then the consumable family that organizes assay methodsbased on a common use model, and then assay method name, enabling a userto efficiently browse the various assay methods and to select the assaymethod to base their new assay method design. On selection of an assaymethod at either 422211 or 422209, the MUI transitions to 422213 topresent the user a summary graphical view of the layout for a plate tobe used in an experiment using the assay method's definition as returnedfrom a service request made via the cloud platform. The display at422213 may also be reached from the review assay method menu at 422204,where it will display a currently selected menu. Although thisembodiment describes methods for performing assays and/or plate-basedexperiments, other experiments and tests are contemplated as well.

In FIG. 43A is an embodiment of a user experience flow through anexperiment module focused on experiment design beginning with analyticaluser app at 432300 running on a user's computer with each step through auser interface numbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ to represent thestepwise flow from begin (1) to end CO for a user as depicted in logicaluser app at 432300 being labelled “1.” The user experience flow of FIG.43A may be managed by a MUI as discussed herein. The experiment modulemay be implemented via a methodical user interface control system 1102operating as part of or in conjunction with the analytical user app432300. The experience flow of FIG. 43A may be facilitated via a MUI asdescribed herein.

At 432301 a user is logging into the analytical user app 432300. Afterthe login process the user interface transitions to start at 432305since the experiment module is envisioned in this embodiment to be thedefault first module after a user logs in, where now the user has a menuof three options including either 1) design an experiment at 432307, 2)review an experiment at 432308, or 3) select a user interface mechanismat 432306. The user interface mechanism at 432306 permits a user toadjust a user interface by presenting one or more options including, butnot limited to, module-specific functions, modules to select, and/orsystem functions being either a horizontal menu and/or toolbar, avertical menu and/or toolbar, a scroll-wheel menu and/or toolbar, adropdown menu and/or toolbar, a keyboard function, a voice-activatedcommand, and/or any other like user interface mechanism to choose anoption. The review experiment option at 432308 provides a workflow asdiscussed below with respect to FIG. 43B.

In choosing to design an experiment at 432307, the MUI transitions to asecond (or next) menu with the user asked to choose to design at newexperiment at 432309 or use a previous experiment at 432310 on which tobase the new experiment.

On selection at 432309 of a new design, the MUI transitions to a designsetup menu at 432321 (discussed further below).

On selection at 432310 of an existing design, the MUI transitions todesign at 432313. The design menu at 432313 asks the user to choose anexperiment at 432314 with options to select from recent experiments at432315 or available experiments at 432316. The default is recentexperiments at 432315 but the MUI may auto-transition to all experimentsat 432318 if recent experiments at 432315 is empty as returned from aservice request made via the cloud platform. At 432315 on selection ofrecent experiment, a user is presented a configurable amount, forexample twenty five, of the most recently ran experiments at 432317 asreturned from a service request made via the cloud platform.Alternatively, selection of available at 432316 presents to a user allexperiments at 432318 as returned from a service request made via thecloud platform with the experiments organized by username and/or emailaddress, date and time of creation, and experiment name, enabling a userto browse the various experiments and to select the experiment on whichto base the new experiment.

On selection of an experiment at either 432317 or 432318 the MUItransitions back to the design menu at 432313 and auto-highlights designsetup at 432321 as a next step. At 432321 a user is provided options toname an experiment starting with a unique default name provided by thesystem, for example but not limited to, a concatenation of username,date, and timestamp, that a user may edit, as well as choosing whetherthe experiment will be performed on a coordinated-operation instrument(also referred to as automation) or an individual-operationinstrument(s) (also referred to as manual). On a user making theirdecisions at 432321 the user interface advances to assay methodselection at 43232, which asks the user to choose an assay method withoptions to select from recent assay methods at 432323 or available assaymethods at 432325. The default is recent at 432323, but the MUI mayauto-transition to all assay methods at 432326 if recent at 432324 isempty as returned from a service request made via the cloud platform. At432322 on selection of recent at 432323, a user is presented aconfigurable amount, for example twenty five, of the most recently usedassay methods at 432324 as returned from a service request made via thecloud platform. Alternatively, selection of available at 432325 presentsto a user all assay methods at 432326 as returned from a service requestmade via the cloud platform with the assay methods organized by thesource being from but not limited to an overall catalog of availableassay methods, purchased consumables associated with available assaymethods, and by each username those who have created new assay methods,then the consumable family that organizes assay methods based on acommon use model, and then assay method name, enabling a user toefficiently browse the various assay methods and to select the assaymethod to be used with the new experiment.

By default, an experiment may have assigned to it one assay method. Butwhile choosing the assay method a user could select at 432306, thefunction selection (as used herein, the “function selection” menus ofvarious embodiments refer to advanced context menus) to view an optionto allow the experiment to have defined for it multiple assay methodsthat on selection initiates the action at 432332 to enable a user toselect more than one assay method for an experiment and converselytoggle back to single assay method selection, where multiple assaymethod selection is used to broaden even further the assays to runagainst a collection of samples with the potential to limit the numberof assay methods that may be selected and/or not limit the number ofassay methods that may be selected dependent on operational constraintsof available instruments or arbitrary limits a user may want to place onan experiment. Once a user has completed selecting the assay methods forthe experiment, the user interface is transitioned to sample definitionat 432327 where the user is presented with options either to enter thenumber of samples to test at 432328 with the system auto-generatingsample identifiers from 1 to the number of samples the user has enteredlimited by the sample configuration in the selected assay method(s) orto import sample definition from an import file as provided by anexternal system at 432329. On manual sample definition at 432328 orimport of samples at 432329, the user interface transitions to the finaldesign step of confirming the experiment is ready to process at 432330.At 432330 a user is presented with the collection of one or more platesdependent on the number of samples being processed using the one or moreselected assay methods, where each plate is assigned one assay methodwith an assigned set of samples to be processed on the respective plate,with a user being able to view the sample assignments to plates througha function at 432333 initiated through the function selection at 432306and on completion returning at 432330. If a user selects one assaymethod for an experiment then the defined samples will result in one ormore plates each with the same assay method where the samples aredistributed from 1 to whatever the number defined or imported resultingin however many plate-assay method pairings are required to be able toprocess the total set of samples defined to create a run of plates-assaymethods-samples, but the number of plate-assay method pairings could belimited by the type of experiment, automated or manual, being selectedin setup at 432321 dependent on physical or arbitrary constraints placedon the system. If a user selects more than one assay method for anexperiment then the defined samples will be limited to the least numberof samples provided for in any of the selected assay methods where thesamples are distributed from 1 to the least number of samples providedfor in any of the selected assay methods on each plate that has for eachplate-assay method pairing based on the selected assay methods of theexperiment to create a run of plates-assay methods-samples. In eitherthe single assay method or multiple assay method experiment, the samplesto test could result in more than one run ofplates-assay-methods-samples; such that, there could be no limit on thenumber of samples a user defined for an experiment where each run ofplates-assay methods-samples would be repeated to cover the completeprocessing of the full set of samples defined. Once a user hasestablished the designed experiment is as expected they would select theconfirm function on the user interface at 432330 that on selectioncreates the experiment ready to be processed by a team through a servicerequest made via the cloud platform and at 432331 the user interfacetransitions back to start at 432305. Setup components shown at 432311,432312, 432319 and 432320 function similarly to 432321. In thealternative, the analytical user app can assist in performing otherexperiments in addition to or in place of the assay experiments and/orplate-based tests described herein.

In FIG. 43B is an embodiment of a user experience flow through anexperiment module focused on reviewing an experiment beginning withanalytical user app at 432300 running on a user's computer with eachstep through a user interface numbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ torepresent the stepwise flow from begin (1) to end (‘n’) for a user asdepicted in analytical user app at 432300 being labelled “1.” as thefirst step. The experience flow of FIG. 43B may be facilitated by a MUIas discussed herein. At 432301 is a login user step. After the loginprocess the user interface transitions to start at 432305 since theexperiment module is envisioned in this embodiment to be the defaultfirst module after a user logs in, where now the user has three optionseither 1) design an experiment at 432307, 2) review an experiment at432308, or 3) select a user interface mechanism at 432306. The userinterface mechanism at 432306 presents one or more options including,but not limited to, module-specific functions, modules to select, and/orsystem functions being either a horizontal menu and/or toolbar, avertical menu and/or toolbar, a scroll-wheel menu and/or toolbar, adropdown menu and/or toolbar, a keyboard function, a voice-activatedcommand, and/or any other like user interface mechanism to choose anoption.

In choosing to review an experiment at 432308, the MUI transitions theapplication to 432340 and presents the user with a first menu permittinga user to select review of experiments at 432341 or of specific platesat 432348. Upon selecting experiments at 432341, a next menu permittinga user to select from recent experiments at 432342 or availableexperiments at 432343 is presented. The default may be recentexperiments at 432342 but may auto-transition to all experiments at432345 if recent experiments at 432344 is empty as returned from aservice request made via the cloud platform.

At 432342, on selection of recent experiments, a user is presented witha configurable amount, for example twenty five, of the most recently ranexperiments at 432344 as returned from a service request made via thecloud platform. Alternatively, selection of available at 432343 presentsto a user all experiments at 432345 as returned from a service requestmade via the cloud platform. The experiments may be organized byusername, date and time of creation, and experiment name, enabling auser to browse the various experiments and to select the experiment toview. On selection of an experiment either at 432344 or at 432345, theMUI transitions to review plates associated with the chosen experimentat 432348.

At 432348 a menu presents a collection of one or more plates in theorder of the addition to the experiment and labeled with the assaymethod name assigned to the plate. Accessing the plates menu afterselection of experiments serves as a filter to the plates menu, and onlythose plates corresponding with the selected experiment will bedisplayed. On selection of a plate at 432348 the MUI transitions tooffer a next menu permitting a user to select from a plate datagraphical view at 432349, a plate data tabular view at 432350, a plateflag tabular view at 432351, a sample menu at 432352, a calibrators menuat 432353, a controls menu at 432354, and execution menus for editinglot data function at 432355, assigning plate function at 432366, andediting layout function at 422367. Selection of 432349 causes the MUI topresent the selected specific plate in the experiment with a heat maprepresentation of signal or calculated concentration if available forall assays (or spots) in the assay method in each well of the plate,where a user may choose a particular assay to view narrowing down thedata to just that one assay and a user may select a particular well tosee the specific signal value for a sample in the selected well for theselected assay while being able to change the high and/or low signal orconcentration range for the plate to alter the intensity of the heat mapacross all samples visible on the plate. In addition to viewing a heatmap of a plate at 432349, a user has other options available for viewingplate data at 432350, at 432351, at 432352, at 432353, and at 432354. At432350 a user is presented a well-by-well table view of the datapresenting but not limited to sample identifier, assay, signal (log andlinear), concentration (log and linear) if available, and statisticsassociated with the generated data. In embodiments, the columnspresented in the table of data may include: Plate, Sample, Assay, Well,Spot, Dilution, Conc., Conc. Unit, Signal, Adj. Signal, Mean, Adj.Signal Mean, CV, Calc. Conc., Calc. Conc. Mean, Calc. Conc. CV, %Recovery, % Recovery Mean. Each of the data presentations at43249-432354 may be presented in the active portion in threesubportions. The first subportion may allow the user to select spotsfrom a visual representation of a well. The second subportion may allowthe user to select wells from a visual representation of a plate. Thethird subportion may provide data from the selected spot. At 432351 auser is optionally presented a table view of flags denoting abnormalevents that may have occurred during processing of one or more platespotentially bringing the data's quality into question for a user, onlyavailable to a user if there was at least one flag generated for aplate. At 432352 a user may select a scatter plot at 432356 of samplesignal or concentration, if available, for each assay on all of theplates and may select to switch viewing signal or concentration, ifavailable, through a toggle function at 432358 and at 432359. At 432352a user may also select to view the data in tabular form at 432357. At432353 a user is presented calibration curve plots one assay method at atime with one plot for each assay in the assay method if the assaymethod is using an analysis method that produces sample concentrationswith up to five plates visible on each plot providing a user interfacemechanism to enable a user to change the five visible plates if thereare more than five plates. The user may further select the option at432360 to change the assay method for which to view the calibrationcurves and additionally select the option to drill down on a particularassay calibration curve plot at 432362 to expand that plot to see itsone or more plates of visible data. Also provided is a mechanism to viewa small table of signal and concentration data for one or more selectedpoints on a curve including excluding calibrator points if a calibratorappears to have an abnormal response, as well as to select the group toview on each plate if the assay method for the viewed assay has definedfor it more than one group on its plate layout. At 432354 a user ispresented percent recovery plots of controls one assay method at a timewith one plot for each assay in the assay method if the assay method isusing an analysis method that produces sample concentrations with up tofive plates visible on each plot providing a user interface mechanism toenable a user to change the five visible plates if there are more thanfive plates. The user is further given the option at 432363 to changethe assay method for which to view the percent recovery plots andadditionally providing the option to drill down on a particular assaypercent recovery plot at 432365 to expand that plot to see its one ormore plates of visible data, while also providing a mechanism to selectthe group to view on each plate if the assay method for the viewed assayhas defined for it more than one group on its plate layout.

Execute menus provided at 432355 to edit provided lot-specific dataassociated with calibrators and/or controls, at 432356 to assign a platemanually in an experiment when the processing of an experiment cannotautomatically assign processed plates to the experiment, and at 432357to edit the layout for a specific plate being viewed in the case where auser needs to make a correction to a layout for an experiment.Supplemental functions not depicted in FIG. 43B include but are notlimited to exporting various tables and/or charts for import into othersoftware applications and copying various charts to be pasted into othersoftware applications.

In an alternative, the analytical user app can assist in reviewing otherexperiments in addition to or in place of the assay experiments and/orplate-based tests described herein. Interface 12 at 432341 provides aninterface that displays possible experiments associated with theanalytical user app. Further, interface 14 a at 432344, interface 16 at432348 provides a visual representation of the plates associated withthe experiments at interface 432344. Similarly, following interface 14 bat 432345, interface 16 at 432348 provides a visual representation ofthe plates associated with the experiments at interface 432345.Interface 19 a at 432361 and 432364 provide interfaces that display allanalytes associated with a given assay method.

In embodiments, a reader module for running a designed experiment may beprovided. The reader module may be adapted to allow a user to performnecessary functions, steps, and/or commands as they relate to theloading, reading, and unloading of plates, such as those used for ECLassays, although other experiments and/or assays are contemplated aswell. In other embodiments, the Reader module relates to other equipmentand/or instruments, such as medical equipment. By way of example, formedical equipment, the Reader module could be used for a MagneticResonance Imaging (MRI) device to assist doctors, other medicalprofessionals, and/or technicians while using the machine. Otherapplications are contemplated as well.

Referring specifically to FIG. 43H, in certain embodiments, firstportion 381821 can include a first menu of user-selectable choicesincluding a Read choice and Review Recent Results choice (although otherchoices may also be included). The latter is explained in greater detailabove with regard to the Experiment Module. In response to a selectionof the Read command, a first portion or a second portion of the MUIdisplay 206 is adapted to output a Play Button 432370 as shown, forexample in FIG. 43C. The Play Button 432370 can be embodied as agraphical-based selectable input as shown in this figure, or it takeother forms as well, including a non-graphical and/or text-basedselection. When embodiment in a graphical selection, other geometricshapes may be employed in addition to the ones shown in this figure.

In response to a selection of the Play Button 432370, a plate reader isadapted to begin reading and/or analyzing one or more plates. The readprocess is described in greater detail herein in conjunction with one ormore of the other modules described herein. As the one or more platesare read, the MUI display 206 is adapted to display a timer 432371 asshown in FIG. 43D. The timer 432371 is adapted to indicate, for example,in a visual representation one or more of: (a) the total amount of timeto load the one or more plates; (b) the total amount of time to read theone or more plates; (c) the total amount of time to unload the one ormore plates; (d) the time remaining to complete the loading of the oneor more plates; (e) the time remaining to complete the reading of theone or more plates; and (f) the time remaining to complete the unloadingof the one or more plates. In the embodiment shown in this figure, thetimer includes three circles, each of which can provide a separate timerfor the load, read, and unload processes, e.g., first, second, and thirdcircles, respectively. In certain embodiments, the load process includesthe time it takes a plate reader or other instrument to automaticallyload the plate to be read. Similarly, the unload process can include thetime to automatically unload the plate after it has been read. Timersfor these processes are not necessarily limited to automatedplate-reading instruments but apply to manually fed instruments as well.

In some embodiments, the timer 432371 can toggle between a logo, e.g., alogo containing three circles, and a countdown timer wherein theperimeter of each circle be modified as time elapses to signify acountdown. For example, a completed circle can represent the beginningtime and the perimeter forming the circle can be deleted in a clockwiseor counter-clockwise fashion to represent that time has elapsed. Thiscan continue until the entire perimeter of the circle vanishes,representing that the entire timer has elapsed. In other examples, theperimeter lines forming the circle can fade vis-à-vis the unexpiredportions of the timer as time elapses so as to illustrate that time haselapsed, while still maintaining the perimeter line of each circle. Inother embodiments, rather than fading, the lines can be highlighted,and/or colored to signify how much time has elapsed, and how much timestill remains for each of the load, read, and unload processes untilthey are complete. In other embodiments, other geometric shapes can beused for these times, either all the same, or one or more being of adifferent shape from the others. In some embodiments, fewer or greaterthan three of these geometric shapes can be utilized for the timerfunction.

In one embodiment, as shown in FIG. 43E, the additional aspects and/orfeatures of the Reader module can be accessed the advanced contextselector 381822 as part of the advanced context menu 381832. In thisexample, the advanced context menu 381832 is adapted to be displayed inresponse to a selection of an advanced context selector 381822 (FIG.39B) when outputted to the MUI display. When displayed, advanced contextmenu 381832 can include a plurality of commands and/or user-selectablechoices arranged in a menu that may take the form of variousconfigurations, as described in greater detail above in conjunction withthe Audit Trail module.

The advanced context menu 381832 can include one or more commands and/oruser-selectable choices. For example, for the embodiment depicted inFIG. 43E, the one or more command and/or user selectable choices caninclude eject plate 432372, partial plate 432373, set plate run 432374,stop instrument 432375, lock UI 432376, and view plate information432377, although additional commands and/or user-selectable choices arecontemplated as well.

In response to the eject plate choice 432372, the plate currently loadedinto a plate-reading instrument is ejected. In one example, the plate isejected automatically and fully from the plate-reading instrument. Inthe alternative, this eject choice can release the plate from theinstrument, so that a user, such as a technical, lab manager, etc., canmanually remove the plate from the plate reading instrument. In responseto the partial plate choice 432373, the first portion (FIG. 43H, 381821)is adapted to receive bar code information as it relates a plateselected among one or more plates. For example, if the current platedoes not contain a barcode, if the barcode itself is unreadable, or onlya portion of it can be read, a user can manually input the barcodeinformation to designate the plate that the reader module is currentlyworking in conjunction with. This information can be inputted via atouchscreen, keyboard, or any other input manner as described herein. Inother examples, the barcode could be inputted automatically with the aidof a barcode reader or the like. The first portion (FIG. 43H, 381821) isfurther adapted to display a user-selectable option for verifying theauthenticity of the bar code information after it is received. Whenselected, the reader module can verify the inputted barcode against oneor more of the databases, e.g., one or more of the databases describedherein, of barcode information to determine if there is a match. If amatch occurs, the plate can be verified. If no match occurs, the usercan either try to input the barcode information again, e.g., in case oftranscription error, or can elect to proceed with the unverified plate.Additionally, in response to the partial plate choice 432373, agraphical representation of the current plate can be displayed on theMUI display 206, either without regard to particular sectors, e.g.,groups of wells, or on a sector basis by overlaying an outline definingone or more sectors of the plate. In further response to the partialplate choice 432373, the advanced context menu 381832 can include one ormore additional commands and/or choices. For example, in the embodimentdepicted in FIG. 43F, the menu can include a save partial plate choice432378 and a cancel partial plate 432379, which can allow users to savethe partial plate information or cancel the plate, e.g., terminate thecurrent use of the plate, respectively.

In response to the set plate run choice 432374, the first portion (FIG.43H, 381821) is adapted to receive a name for a plate run associatedwith a plate. For example, a user can enter, e.g., through an inputdevice, e.g., touchscreen, keyboard etc., the name for the runassociated with one or more plates that are to be read by theplate-reading instrument. In some embodiments, this information canalready be encoded in the barcode, and thus, the run name willautomatically populate. The run can be used for various reasons, forexample to allow users to associate several plates together from asingle experiment, to allow teams to more easily collaborate onexperiments, assays, or analyses that involve one or more plates commonto the team, etc.

In response to the stop instrument choice 432375, the first portion(FIG. 43H, 381821) is adapted to display a confirmation choice beforeissuing a stop instrument command. For the example shown in FIG. 43G,the first portion 381821 can include a confirmation choice 381827. Thischoice can be adapted to be displayed to provide one or more users withthe ability to confirm whether they want to abort the current run of theplate. When presented with this confirmation choice 381827, the userscan be presented with a choice as to whether they wish to abort thecurrent run of a plate by issuing the stop instrument command, e.g.,selecting “Yes” from this menu, or continuing the run by disregardingthe stop instrument command, e.g., selecting “No” from the menu. Theseoptions are merely exemplary as other choices and/or command prompts arecontemplated as well. If the stop instrument command is issued, theusers can be automatically prompted on MUI display 206 with a menu ofchoice that are available in response to the Review Recent Resultschoices as described above, thus allowing the user to review the resultsof previously completed plates. In other words, in this example, byissuing the stop instrument command, the user will be directedautomatically to Review Recent Results menu as described above. If thestop instrument command is disregarded, the timer 432371 (FIG. 43D) asdescribed above can be re-displayed on the MUI display 206 throughoutthe remaining duration of the run in accordance with that feature asdescribed above.

In response to the lock UI choice 432376, the MUI display 206 is adaptedto be locked from user selections until receiving the current user'spassword. In this manner, input will be received from a user, whether itis through command and/or choice selections or other inputs, e.g., mouseclicks or scrolling, keyboard strokes, touchscreen inputs, etc., butthose selects will not cause any modification to what is outputted toMUI display 206, nor will commands be received based on this user input,other than the password to unlock the MUI display 206. After this choiceis selected, the MUI display 206 will remain locked throughout theduration of the plate run and will automatically unlock once the run iscomplete. In other embodiments, the MUI display 206 will remain lockeduntil the current user's password is received. In response to the viewplate information choice 432377, information that relates to one or moreplates can be displayed. The information includes one or more of theplate run name, as described in greater detail above, plate barcode,e.g., the barcode provided by the plate manufacturer, long side customerbarcode, e.g., a customer-specific barcode affixed to the long side ofthe plate, short side customer barcode, e.g., a customer-specificbarcode affixed to the long side of the plate, plate type, e.g., singlewell, multi-well, assay time, coating type, etc., operator, e.g., user,team, account, etc., and read time, e.g., read time of one or moreindividual plates and/or total read time of the plates for a given platerun.

In FIG. 44 is an embodiment of a user experience flow through an audittrail module beginning with analytical user app at 442400 running on auser's computer with each step through a user interface numberedsequentially 1 through ‘n’ to represent the stepwise flow from begin (1)to end (‘n’) for a user as depicted in analytical user app at 442400being labelled “1.” as the first step. The user experience flow of FIG.44 may be facilitated by a MUI as described herein. At 442401 a user mayselect a user interface mechanism presenting one or more optionsincluding but not limited to module-specific functions, modules toselect, and/or system functions being either a horizontal menu and/ortoolbar, a vertical menu and/or toolbar, a scroll-wheel menu and/ortoolbar, a dropdown menu and/or toolbar, a keyboard function, avoice-activated command, and/or any other like user interface mechanismto choose an option. At 442402, a work flow starts and the MUIauto-transitions to all audit events at 442403 to present to a user aview of all events captured for a user's current team with each eventincluding, but not limited to, username and/or email address oforiginator, date and timestamp, the source, and information pertainingthe event as returned from a service request made via the cloudplatform. This view at 442403 enables a user to sort the view in forwardor reverse ordering by username, date and timestamp, source, orinformation about the event. At 442403 a user may use the functionselection mechanism at 442401 or an export command in the menu providedat 442403 to export the entire collection of events at 442404 to a fileformat easily importable to other computer applications such as, withoutlimitation, Excel, Word, and/or any other computer application, such as,CSV, tab-delimited text, JSON, XML, and/or any other format. At 442403 auser may use the function selection mechanism at 442401 to export theentire collection of events at 442404 to a computer operating systemmechanism used for copying and pasting content from one computerapplication to another computer application often referred to as aclipboard.

In FIG. 45 is an embodiment of software modules in acoordinated-operation instrument app 452500 forming the user interfaceexperience for the use of a coordinated-operation instrument with eachmodule using services provided by cloud platform 452504 to create, read,update, and/or delete any and all data relevant to each module'sprocessing and commanding and controlling physical hardware integratedwith, or separate from, the coordinated-operation instrument, as wellas, any other services needed for each module's processing. Use of thecoordinated-operation instrument app 452500 may be facilitated by a MUIas discussed herein. Accordingly, the coordinated-operation instrumentapp 452500 may include a methodical user interface control system 1102or may operate in conjunction with a methodical user interface controlsystem 1102. Operation module 452501 may be the active module by defaultwhen the coordinated-operation instrument app 452500 starts. Operationmodule providing the interface for executing experiments on aninstrument to collect data for samples using assay methods defined in anexperiment. Maintenance module 452502 provides the interface forexecuting maintenance functions on the instrument to ensure optimaloperation of the instrument. A collection of system functions 452503provides typical utilities in support of use of thecoordinated-operation instrument such as, but not limited to, loggingoff, viewing help information, viewing user guide, viewing legal noticesand/or documents, changing software configuration, changing userpassword, and/or other utilities. The collection of system function452503 may be provided as a separate MUI module and/or a series ofsoftware protocols that operate alongside the other discussed MUImodules. A user can log into a coordinated-operation instrument app452500 through system functions 452503 using services provided by cloudplatform 452504. If authentication of a user by a login service on cloudplatform 452504 returns that a user has more than one account and/orteam, a user will be required to select the default account and/or team,but if a user does not belong to more than one account and/or team, theservice on the cloud platform 452504 would auto-assign a user to thesole account and team for that user. On completing login, the user landsat start of the operation module and begins using thecoordinated-operation instrument app as they need. In an alternative,the coordinated-operation instrument app 452500 can assist in performingother experiments in addition to or in place of the assay experimentsdescribed herein.

In FIG. 46 is an embodiment of a user experience flow through anoperation module in the coordinated-operation instrument app at 462600running on a instrument's computer with each step through a userinterface numbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ to represent the stepwiseflow from begin (1) to end CO for a user as depicted incoordinated-operation instrument app at 462600 being labelled “1.” Theuser experience flow of FIG. 46 may be facilitated via a MUI asdiscussed herein. At 462601 a user is logging into thecoordinated-operation instrument app. After the login process the userinterface transitions to start at 462602 and on login the MUI presents amenu of items including 1) selecting an experiment to run at 462604, 2)reviewing recent results of previous runs at 462611, 3) selecting a userinterface mechanism at 462603, 4) processing a run at 462613, and 5)reviewing runs at 462620.

The user interface mechanism at 462603 presents one or more optionsincluding but not limited to module-specific functions, modules toselect, and/or system functions being either a horizontal menu and/ortoolbar, a vertical menu and/or toolbar, a scroll-wheel menu and/ortoolbar, a dropdown menu and/or toolbar, a keyboard function, avoice-activated command, and/or any other like user interface mechanismto choose an option.

In choosing to select an experiment to run at 462604 the MUI presents anext menu of options to the user to select from recent experiments at462605 or available experiments at 462606 with the default being recentat 462607. The MUI may auto-transition to all experiments at 462608 ifrecent at 462607 is empty as returned from a service request made viathe cloud platform. At 462605 on selection of recent experiments a useris presented a configurable amount, for example twenty five, of the mostrecently designed experiments to run at 462607 as returned from aservice request made via the cloud platform, although any other numberof recently designed experiments is contemplated as well. Alternatively,selection of available at 462606 presents to a user all designedexperiments ready to be run at 462608 as returned from a service requestmade via the cloud platform with the experiments organized by username,date and time of creation, and experiment name, enabling a user tobrowse the various experiments and to select the experiment to run.

On selecting an experiment to run either at 462607 or at 462608, the MUItransitions to process the experiment run that has just been selected at462613 through the user interface leading a user through loadingconsumables and samples onto the appropriate locations on the instrumentfor the experiment's run at 462614 and on completing the loadautomatically transition to selecting to run the experiment at 462615.On selecting to run the experiment at 462615 the software initiates anautomated inventory check of what was loaded by the user at 462614through scanning of barcodes as appropriate presenting errors to theuser to correct any issues that arise and on confirmation of 100%correctness of what was loaded, initiating the run and the automatedexecution of the experiment's assigned assay methods against the samplesunder test with one or more types of timers presenting the timeremaining in the run while also enabling a user to see live video of theinstrument running. On completion of the run the MUI presentsinstructions at 462616 for the user to unload the instrument leading theuser through the process of removing consumables and samples from theinstrument, as well as, emptying bulk containers used in the processing.On completion of the unload the MUI transitions to present to the userplate results at 462622 viewing the entire set of plates processed inthe run at 462622 then choosing a plate to review in greater detaileither at 462629, at 462630, and/or at 462631; and finally enabling auser to return to start at 462602 to perform another experiment run.

In an alternative to selecting an experiment to run at 462604, the usermay choose to review recently ran experiments at 462611, cause the MUIto present a next menu of items to the user to select from runs at462621 or plates at 462622. Upon selecting runs at 462621, a next menuprovided by the MUI permits the user to select from recent ranexperiments at 462623 or available ran experiments at 462624 with thedefault being recent at 462623. The MUI may auto-transition to availableexperiments at 462624 if recent at 462625 is empty as returned from aservice request made via the cloud platform. At 462623 on selection ofrecent a user is presented a configurable amount, for example twentyfive, of the most recently ran experiments to review at 462625 asreturned from a service request made via the cloud platform.Alternatively, selection of available experiments at 462624 presents toa user all ran experiments ready to be reviewed at 462626 as returnedfrom a service request made via the cloud platform with the experimentsorganized by username, date and time of creation, and experiment name,enabling a user to browse the various experiments and to select theexperiment to review. On selecting an experiment to review either at462625 or at 462626 the user interface transitions to present to theuser plate results at 462622 viewing the entire set of plates processedin the run at 462622 then choosing a plate to review in greater detaileither at 462629, at 462630, and/or at 462631. Although this embodimentdescribes methods for performing assays and/or plate-based tests, otherexperiments and tests are contemplated as well.

In FIG. 47 is an embodiment of a user experience flow through anmaintenance module focused on maintaining an instrument beginning withcoordinate-operation instrument app at 472700 running on a user'scomputer with each step through a user interface numbered sequentially 1through ‘n’ to represent the stepwise flow from begin (1) to end (‘n’)for a user as depicted in coordinated-operation instrument app at 472700being labelled “1.” as the first step. The experience flow of FIG. 47may be implemented via MUI as described herein. At 472701 a user mayselect a user interface mechanism presenting one or more optionsincluding but not limited to module-specific functions, modules toselect, and/or system functions being either a horizontal menu and/ortoolbar, a vertical menu and/or toolbar, a dropdown menu and/or toolbar,a keyboard function, a voice-activated command, and/or any other likeuser interface mechanism to choose an option, choosing maintenancemodule. On selection of maintenance module at 472701 the applicationtransitions at 472702 to the start of the maintenance module andpresents at 472703 an option to run a maintenance method or at 472704 anoption review results of a previously ran maintenance method.

On selecting at 472703 a user is presented on the user interface the setof maintenance methods to run organized in a left set of top-levelmaintenance categories including but not limited to initializing theinstrument, issuing a component command, and running a component testand associated with each item in the left set would be a right set ofone or more maintenance methods pertinent to the instrument beingmaintained associated with the left maintenance category from which auser would select the maintenance method to perform. Once a maintenancemethod is selected at 472703 the software transitions to process themaintenance method at 472705 presenting the user a run button toinitiate the processing and on tapping the run button the softwareinitiates the robotic processing associated with the maintenance methodpresenting a user an hours:minutes:seconds countdown timer in variousanimations that a user could toggle through based on their preferences,as well as, an option to a live video to watch the robotic processingassociated with the maintenance method. The maintenance method processmenu at 472705 may be accessed via the start menu or may beauto-transitioned to after completion of the menu at 472703.

Once the maintenance method's robotic processing completes at 472706,the user interface transitions to 472707 for a user to review (alsoreachable via the start menu 472702) any results reported by themaintenance method presented in a table sorted by most recently runmaintenance method showing the username of the person who ran themaintenance method, the name of the maintenance method, the date andtime of completion of the maintenance method, and an optional result ofthe maintenance method if it reports a result. A user may select startat 472702 to return to the option of running another maintenance methodat 472703 or reviewing maintenance results at 472704 or selecting adifferent module to switch to at 472701. On selecting reviewingmaintenance results at 472704 the user interface is transitioned to472707 to present to a user the previously disclosed maintenance methodresults table for FIG. 47.

In FIG. 48 is an embodiment of software modules in anindividual-operation instrument app 483000 forming the user interfaceexperience for the use of an individual-operation instrument with eachmodule using services provided by cloud platform 483003 to create, read,update, and/or delete any and all data relevant to each module'sprocessing and commanding and controlling physical hardware integratedwith, or separate from, the individual-operation instrument, as well asany other services needed for each module's processing. Operation module483001 may be the active module by default when an individual-operationinstrument app 483000 starts. Operation module 483001 provides theinterface for executing an operation provided by the instrument insupport of processing a defined assay method on samples for ultimatecollection of data from the samples under test. 483002 Collection ofsystem functions 483002 provides typical utilities in support of use ofthe individual-operation instrument such as, but not limited to, loggingoff, viewing help information, viewing user guide, viewing legal noticesand/or documents, changing software configuration, changing userpassword, and/or other utilities. The collection of system function483002 may be provided as a separate MUI module and/or a series ofsoftware protocols that operate alongside the other discussed MUImodules. As discussed above, the individual-operation instrument app483000 may employ a MUI supplied by a methodical user interface controlsystem 1102 for interface purposes. The operation module 483001 and thesystem functions 483002 may all employ a MUI for user interfacepurposes. A user will log into an individual-operation instrument app483000 through system functions 483002 using services provided by cloudplatform 483003. If authentication of a user by a login service on cloudplatform 483003 returns that a user has more than one account and/orteam, a user will be required to select the default account and/or team,but if a user does not belong to more than one account and/or team, theservice on the cloud platform 483003 would auto-assign a user to thesole account and team for that user. On completing login, the user landsat start of the operation module 483001 and begins using theindividual-operation instrument app 483000 as needed. In thealternative, the of software modules in an individual-operationinstrument app 483000 can support other experiments in addition to or inplace of the assay experiments described herein.

In FIG. 49A is an embodiment of a user experience flow through anoperation module in the individual-operation instrument app at 493100running on a instrument's computer with each step through a userinterface numbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ to represent the stepwiseflow from begin (1) to end (′1) for a user as depicted inindividual-operation instrument app at 493100 being labelled “1.” Theexperience flow depicted in FIG. 49A may be implemented or facilitatedby a MUI as discussed herein. At 493101 a user logs into theindividual-operation instrument app 483000. After the login process theuser interface transitions to start at 493102 and the user is presentedwith a first menu of items, including 1) perform the operation at493104, 2) review recent results of previous performances of theoperation at 493105, or 3) select a user interface mechanism at 493103.The user interface mechanism 493103 presents one or more optionsincluding, but not limited to, module-specific functions, modules toselect, and/or system functions being either a horizontal menu and/ortoolbar, a vertical menu and/or toolbar, a scroll-wheel menu and/ortoolbar. a dropdown menu and/or toolbar, a keyboard function, avoice-activated command, and/or any other like user interface mechanismto choose an option.

On selection by a user to run a process at 493104 the MUI transitions to493106 to prepare the instrument to execute the process. The MUIpresents a progress indicator to keep the user apprised of progress andultimate completion. The software may further provide a mechanism toperform the operation in a continuous mode, or repeat the operation on anew plate, if a user chooses to stack or batch plates up for processing.On completion of the operation over one or more plates, the datacollected from the operation may be uploaded through services providedon the cloud platform to the user's team for review via the cloud aswell as storing performance data gathered from the operation of theinstrument for monitoring and support by the provider of the instrument,then the user interface would automatically transition to review at493105 presenting instrument-specific results at 493107 of the one ormore operations that just completed. Alternatively to performing theoperation at 493104, the user could choose review at 493105 to cause theMUI to transit to present instrument-specific results at 493108 wherethe user is presented a maximum set of recent results that could be thelast ‘n’ plates (e.g., 25) processed, the last ‘n’ days (e.g., 30), orany other desired configuration for presenting chronologically recentset of results provided by the instrument. In an alternative toperforming the operation at 493104 or reviewing recent results at493105, the user could choose one or more functions at 493103, includingconfiguring the operation of the instrument for ultimate use. A user mayperform the operation at 493104 time and time again, then review theresults at 493105 to determine if the instrument performed as expected.

In FIG. 49AA another embodiment of a user experience flow through anoperation module in the individual-operation instrument app at 493100running on a instrument's computer with each step through a userinterface numbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ to represent the stepwiseflow from begin (1) to end (‘n’) for a user as depicted inindividual-operation instrument app at 493100 being labelled “1.” as thefirst step, also as a user works through the flow of a user interfacethey could easily backtrack to a previous step. The experience flowdepicted in FIG. 49AA may be implemented or facilitated by a MUI asdiscussed herein. At 493101 a user is logging into theindividual-operation instrument app 483000. After the login process theMUI transitions to start at 493102, since the operation module isenvisioned in this embodiment to be the default first module after auser logs in, where on login the user has two options either Option 1)to perform the operation at 493104, or Option 2) to review recentresults of previous performances of the operation at 493105. The usermay also, at the start menu 493102 or at any other time in theexperience flow,—select a user interface mechanism at 493103 (e.g., anadvanced context menu) presenting one or more options including but notlimited to module-specific functions, modules to select, and/or systemfunctions being either a horizontal menu and/or toolbar, a vertical menuand/or toolbar, a dropdown menu and/or toolbar, a keyboard function, avoice-activated command, and/or any other like user interface mechanismto choose an option.

On selection by a user to perform the operation at 493104 the MUItransitions to 493106 to prepare the instrument then execute theoperation presenting to the user a progress indicator to keep the userapprised of progress and ultimate completion. The software may furtherprovide a mechanism to perform the operation in a continuous mode, orrepeat the operation on a new plate, if a user chooses to stack or batchplates up for processing. On completion of the operation over one ormore plates, the data collected from the operation may be uploadedthrough services provided on a cloud platform to the user's team forreview via the cloud as well as storing performance data gathered fromthe operation of the instrument for monitoring and support by theprovider of the instrument, then the MUI may automatically transition toreview at 493105 presenting instrument-specific results of the one ormore operations that just completed at 493108. Alternatively toperforming the operation at 493104, the user could choose review at493105 with the MUI transitioning to present instrument-specific resultsat 493108 where the user is presented a maximum set of recent resultsthat could be the last ‘n’ plates (e.g., 25) processed, the last ‘n’days (e.g., 30), or any other desired configuration for presentingchronologically recent set of results provided by the instrument.Alternatively, to performing the operation at 493104 or reviewing recentresults at 493105, the user could choose one or more functions at493103, including configuring the operation of the instrument forultimate use. Typically, but not limited to, a user would perform theoperation at 493104 time and time again, then reviewing the results at493105 to see if the instrument performed as expected.

FIG. 49B illustrates an embodiment of the flow of results review in anoperation module 403120 specifically for a plate reader as anindividual-operation instrument. The plates menu at 493121 is acollection of one or more plates in the order of operation execution andon selection of a plate at 493121 the MUI transitions to present optionsat 493122, at 493123, and at 493124. At 493122 a user is presented aspecific plate in the experiment with a heat map representation ofsignal for all data locations in each well of the plate. A user maychoose a particular data location to view across all wells of the platenarrowing down the data to just that one data location plus a user mayselect a particular well to see the specific signal value for a samplein the selected well while being able to change the high and/or lowsignal range for the plate to alter the intensity of the heat map acrossall samples visible on the plate. At 493123 a user is presented awell-by-well table view of the data presenting but not limited to sampleidentifier, data location, and signal. At 493124 a user is optionallypresented a table view of flags denoting abnormal events that may haveoccurred during processing of a plate potentially bringing the data'squality into question for a user only available to a user if there wasat least one flag generated for a plate. Although this embodimentdescribes plate-reader operations and/or applications, the methodsdescribed herein can be applied in the alternative to the review ofother experiments and tests in the alternative.

In FIG. 50 is an embodiment of software modules in an workflow-aidinstrument app at 503200 forming the user interface experience for theuse of a workflow-aid instrument with each module using servicesprovided by cloud platform at 503203 to create, read, update, and/ordelete any and all data relevant to each module's processing andpotentially commanding and controlling physical hardware integrated withthe workflow-aid instrument, as well as, any other services needed foreach module's processing, wherein, collect and prepare module at 503201would be the active module by default when the workflow-aid instrumentapp at 503200 starts. The workflow-aid instrument app 502300 may employor be implemented along with a MUI to provide user interfaces for thecollect and prepare module 503201 and the system functions 503202. At503201 is a collect and prepare module providing the interface forgathering constituent components stored in potentially differentclimate-controlled or room temperature environments to be used inprocessing one or more assays in a chosen experiment, for example butnot limited to, kits, antibody sets, bulk solutions, plastic-ware suchas tips and microtiter plates, and/or any other component required to beused in processing one or more assays in a chosen experiment; andpreparing constituents components requiring pre-processing prior tobeing used in the processing of one or more assays defined for anexperiment, for example, rehydrating lyophilized reagents, thawingfrozen reagents, pretreating samples, and/or any other step required toprepare constituent components to be used in processing one or moreassays in a chosen experiment. At 503202 is a collection of systemfunctions providing typical utilities in support of use of theworkflow-aid instrument such as but not limited to logging off, viewinghelp information, viewing user guide, viewing legal notices and/ordocuments, changing software configuration, changing user password,and/or other utilities. A user will log into a workflow-aid instrumentapp at 503200 through system functions at 503202 using services providedby cloud platform at 503203. If authentication of a user by a loginservice on cloud platform at 503203 returns that a user has more thanone account and/or team, a user will be required to select the defaultaccount and/or team, but if a user does not belong to more than oneaccount and/or team, the service on the cloud platform at 503203 wouldauto-assign a user to the sole account and team for that user. Oncompleting login, the user lands at start of the collect and preparemodule and begins using the workflow-aid instrument app as they require.

In FIG. 51 is an embodiment of a user experience flow through a collectand prepare module in the workflow-aid instrument app at 513300 runningon a instrument's computer with each step through a user interfacenumbered sequentially 1 through ‘n’ to represent the stepwise flow frombegin (1) to end (‘n’) for a user as depicted in workflow-aid instrumentapp at 513300 being labelled “1.” as the first step. The experience flowof FIG. 51 may be implemented via a MUI as discussed herein. At 513301 auser is logging into the workflow-aid instrument app. After the loginprocess the user interface transitions to start at 513302 since thecollect and prepare module is envisioned in this embodiment to be thedefault first module after a user logs in, where on login the user hasfour options either 1) select an experiment ready to begin collect andprepare at 513304, 2) select an in-progress experiment to continuecollect and prepare at 513305, 3) select an experiment that waspreviously collected and prepared at 513306, or 4) select a userinterface mechanism at 513303 presenting one or more options includingbut not limited to module-specific functions, modules to select, and/orsystem functions being either a horizontal menu and/or toolbar, avertical menu and/or toolbar, a dropdown menu and/or toolbar, a keyboardfunction, a voice-activated command, and/or any other like userinterface mechanism to choose an option. On selection by a user to beginan experiment ready to be collected and prepared at 513304 the userinterface presents the set of experiments ready to be processed bycalling a cloud service returning the available experiments andpresenting the set of returned experiments, on user selection of aparticular experiment transitioning to collect at 513307.

On transition by the MUI to 513307 the user is presented options tocollect under various temperature storage modalities as required by theassay methods chosen for the experiment, in this embodiment but notlimited to, −20 C at 513308, −80 C at 513309, 4 C at 513310, and at roomtemperature at 513311. The collect menu at 513307 is an example of awalk-through type execution menu, as described herein. Under eachtemperature zone the user will be presented a collection of assaymethods each with one or more assay components to be collected from thattemperature zone as returned by a call to a cloud service for theexperiment being collected. The collection could be presented as alinear list to lead the user through the collection one item at a timerequiring the user to check off each item as items are collected or auser could jump to the end of collection in a temperature by choosing toselect a check-all control because they do not need to be led throughcollect. As a user works through the list of items to collect, theycould be presented to the right of the list a photo or graphicrepresentation of the item to be collected with a breakdown of its oneor more constituent components if an item has one or more constituentcomponents. To aid quick selection of an item the user could scan abarcode on the item that will automatically detect the item beingcollected and check it off in the list of items to be collectedregardless of the item's position in the list. On checking off an itemin the list a cloud service is called to store this information and thelist automatically transitions to the next item to collect. Important tonote a user could choose to jump around from one temperature zone toanother as they wish, as well as, a function could be provided underfunction selection at 513303 to re-arrange the order of the temperaturezones if a user wants a different order. A user may also be provided afunction under function selection at 513303 (e.g., an advanced contextmenu) to print out the steps of collect if they prefer to have a papercopy, as well as, a function under function selection at 513303 toexport the steps of collect to some 3^(rd) party software application.Once all items have been collected in a particular temperature zone acloud service is called to update the experiment with its collectionbeing completed and the user interface transitions to the nexttemperature zone continuing the process of collection until such time asthe last item in the last temperature zone has been collectedtransitioning the user interface to prepare at 513312. The prepare menuat 513312 is an example of a walkthrough type execution menu.

On transition to prepare at 513312 the user is presented in thisembodiment an aggregate list of the steps to be performed across allassay methods chosen for the experiment as returned by a call to a cloudservice to retrieve the chosen assay methods for the experiment with thelist ordered by the first step to last step defined for an assay methodwhere assay methods sharing a common type of step in this embodimentwould provide a sub-step selection for each common step type such that auser could perform the step for each assay method checking it off foreach assay method or the user could check it off once for the stepcovering all associated assay methods. An alternative to the sub-stepapproach, but not intended to be limited to, would be a one-level listwith one step for each step and assay method pairing. Regardless of howthe steps are presented to a user, the one or more actions to be takenfor the one active step to be performed by a user in this embodiment,but not intended to be limited to, would be presented to the right ofthe list of steps where the actions would be presented to a user as avideo, one or more graphical representations, and/or text descriptionwith the intention this information helps a user properly perform theone or more actions of the step. As a user completes the actions of astep, whether for one assay method or many assay methods, they wouldcheck off the step causing a call to a cloud service to store thecompleted state for the step for all assay methods associated with thatstep.

Once all steps for all assay methods have been completed, denoted bychecking off the step, prepare will be complete with the user asked viaa modal dialog to confirm completion, where, positive confirmation ofcompletion causes a call to a cloud service to update the state of theexperiment to indicate it has been prepared and returning the userinterface to start at 513302 with the experiment now ready to beprocessed; and negative confirmation of completion returns the user tothe last performed step in prepare at 513312. A supplemental functionavailable in any stage of collect and prepare under function selectionat 513303 is the ability to display, export to 3^(rd) party software,and/or print the one or more sample input plates associated with anexperiment.

In FIG. 52 is an embodiment of the computing flow of software automaticupdate for bioanalytical user computers at 513408 in the analyticalcomputing system at 513402. The flow is represented in a “swim lane”diagram depicting independent computing systems operating concurrent toeach other being computing system provider business system at 513401,cloud platform at 513403 with its software release services at 513406,and bioanalytical user computers at 513408 with its bioanalytical userupdate service at 513423 with processing swim lane for computing systemprovider business system at 513401 depicted above dotted line at 513412,processing swim lane for software release services depicted betweendotted lines at 513412 and 513419, and processing swim lane forbioanalytical user update service at 513423 depicted below dotted lineat 513419. The processing of computing system provider business systemat 513400 is depicted as out of scope for the analytical computingsystem at 513402 with the dotted-line outline of analytical computingsystem provider environment at 513400 but in this embodiment softwareupdates originate there at 513409 when a new release of software isproduced for deployment with one or more files associated with the newrelease bundled at 513410 and pushed to cloud platform through fileupload services inherent to the cloud platform then transitioning at513411 to call a web service on the cloud platform at 513403 to requestan auto-update of the software on various bioanalytical user computersat 513408. The processing of software release services at 513406 has twoconcurrent services, one service to create a software update record at513413 provided for an outside agent to notify the analytical computingsystem at 513401 that an auto-software update is requested that in thisembodiment occurs at 513411 and a second service for bioanalytical usercomputers to check for availability of an auto-software update at513416. The service at 513413 receives a requesting to create thesoftware update record, confirms at 513414 the request is a validservice request from an appropriately credentialed requester and if notvalid the request is rejected and not processed, but if proper a newauto-software update is created for the version of software at 513415.The service at 513416 receives a request to check if there is an activeauto-software update, confirms at 513417 the request is a valid servicerequest from an appropriately credentialed requester and if not validthe request is rejected and not processed, but if valid the downloadlink to the software update is returned to the requester. The processingof bioanalytical user update service at 513423 is a periodicallyexecuted service requesting availability of updates at 513420 via a webservice call at 513416 and on receipt of a response checking theresponse at 513424 to either repeat the service request if not availableor processing the software update if available at 513421 by downloadingthe software update via the download link provided by web service callat 513416 and on completion of the download executing the softwareinstall at 513422 and after completion of the install the bioanalyticaluser computer software is updated. Although this figure uses the term“bioanalytical,” it applies to any analytical computing system, systemprovider, user, user computer, etc.

In FIG. 53 is an embodiment of the computing flow of software automaticupdate for bioanalytical instrument computers in the analyticalcomputing system at 513502. The term “bioanalytical instrument” is usedin this context to represent any and all of the before-mentionedcoordinated-operation instrument, individual-operation instrument,and/or workflow-aid instrument, generalized in FIG. 53 for simplicity ofdescription since they operate the same in this regard. The flow isrepresented in a “swim lane” diagram depicting independent computingsystems operating concurrent to each other being computing systemprovider business system at 513501, cloud platform at 513503 with itssoftware release services at 513506, and bioanalytical instrumentcomputers at 513508 with its instrument update service at 513523 withprocessing swim lane for computing system provider business system at513501 depicted above dotted line at 513512, processing swim lane forsoftware release services depicted between dotted lines at 513512 and513519, and processing swim lane for instrument update service at 513523depicted below dotted line at 513519. The processing of computing systemprovider business system at 513500 is depicted as out of scope for theanalytical computing system at 513502 with the dotted-line outline ofanalytical computing system provider environment at 513500 but in thisembodiment software updates originate there at 513509 when a new releaseof software is produced for deployment with one or more files associatedwith the new release bundled at 513510 and pushed to cloud platformthrough file upload services inherent to the cloud platform thentransitioning at 513511 to call a web service on the cloud platform at513503 to request an auto-update of the software on variousbioanalytical instrument computers at 513508. The processing of softwarerelease services at 513506 has two concurrent services, one service tocreate a software update record at 513513 provided for an outside agentto notify the analytical computing system at 513501 that anauto-software update is requested that in this embodiment occurs at513511 and a second service for bioanalytical instrument computers tocheck for availability of an auto-software update at 513516. The serviceat 513513 receives a requesting to create the software update record,confirms at 513514 the request is a valid service request from anappropriately credentialed requester and if not valid the request isrejected and not processed, but if proper a new auto-software update iscreated for the version of software at 513515. The service at 513516receives a request to check if there is an active auto-software update,confirms at 513517 the request is a valid service request from anappropriately credentialed requester and if not valid the request isrejected and not processed, but if valid the download link to thesoftware update is returned to the requester. The processing ofinstrument update service at 513523 is a periodically executed servicerequesting availability of updates at 513520 via a web service call at513516 and on receipt of a response checking the response at 513524 toeither repeat the service request if not available or processing thesoftware update if available at 513521 by downloading the softwareupdate via the download link provided by web service call at 513516 andon completion of the download executing the software install at 513522and after completion of the install the bioanalytical instrumentcomputer software is updated. Although this figure uses the term“bioanalytical,” it applies to any analytical computing system, systemprovider, user, user computer, instrument, etc.

The methods, techniques, and systems are described herein particularlywith respect to instrumentation and bioinstrumentation. The methods,techniques, and systems, however, are not limited to such applications.MUIs as provided herein may be applied to any activity or process thatmay be structured according to a hierarchical process flow. MUIs asprovided herein may be applied to processes in a variety of additionalfields, including, for example, home and interior design, furnitureassembly, cooking and meal design, travel planning, business planning,graphic design (e.g., business cards, invitations, crafts such asquilting, knitting, and sewing, web pages, etc.), financial planning,bank account management, taxes, wills, video game design, video editing,media navigation (e.g., Netflix®, tv channel navigation), car purchase,home purchase, beer brewing, manufacturing, project management in anyfield, etc.

In FIG. 54 is an embodiment of an example of a non-bioanalytical use ofthe disclosed architecture for software modules in an chef app at 513600forming the primary user interface experience for creating a meal forone or more people with each module using services provided by cloudplatform at 513606, assuming relevant chef-related services areavailable on cloud platform at 513606, to create, read, update, and/ordelete any and all data relevant to each module's processing, as wellas, any other services needed for each module's processing, wherein,meal planner module at 513601 would be the active module by default whenthe chef user app at 513600 starts, guiding a chef through the planningof the meal they wish to create. The chef app 513600 may be implementedin conjunction with a MUI to provide a user interface. At 513602 is aningredient collection module providing the interface for guiding a chefand/or their designee through the purchasing and/or retrieval of allingredients and/or anything required for the execution of the mealeither used in meal preparation and/or used during eating the meal. At513603 is a meal preparation module used to guide a chef and/or theirdesignee through the steps of cooking the meal. At 513604 is a mealexecution module used to guide a chef and/or their designee in settingthe stage and mood for the meal as well as the timing of various coursesof the meal. At 513605 is a collection of system functions providingtypical utilities in support of use of the system such as but notlimited to logging off, viewing help information, viewing user guide,viewing legal notices and/or documents, changing software configuration,changing user password, and/or other utilities. A user will log into thechef user app at 513600 through system functions at 513605 usingservices provided by cloud platform at 513606. On completing login, theuser lands at start of the meal planner module at 513601 and beginsusing the chef user app at 513600 as they need. Only the meal plannermodule at 513601 will be further disclosed for the purpose ofillustration of an example of a non-bioanalytical use.

In FIG. 55 is an embodiment of a user experience flow through an mealplanner module beginning with chef app at 513700 running on a user'scomputer with each step through a user interface numbered sequentially 1through ‘n’ to represent the stepwise flow from begin (1) to end CO fora user as depicted in chef app at 513700 being labelled “1.” as thefirst step. The user experience flow of FIG. 55 may be implemented via aMUI as described herein. After the login process the user interfacetransitions to start at 513701 since the meal planner module isenvisioned in this embodiment to be the default first module after auser logs in with to options to design a meal at 513703 or at 513704select a user interface mechanism presenting one or more optionsincluding but not limited to module-specific functions, modules toselect, and/or system functions being either a horizontal menu and/ortoolbar, a vertical menu and/or toolbar, a dropdown menu and/or toolbar,a keyboard function, a voice-activated command, and/or any other likeuser interface mechanism to choose an option. In this embodiment at513703 a user is presented one option to design a meal plan with a userchoosing to do so transitioning the user interface to a choice ofcreating a new meal plan from scratch at 513705 or creating a meal planfrom a pre-existing meal plan at 513706, where choosing new at 513705transitions the user interface directly to meal plan design setup at513712 and choosing to base the new meal on a pre-existing meal plan at513706 transitions the user interface to a choice of recent meal plansat 513707 or available meal plans at 513708 with the default beingrecent at 513707 but auto-transitioning to available at 513708 if recentat 513707 is empty as returned from a service request made via the cloudplatform. At 513707 on selection of recent a user is presented aconfigurable amount, for example twenty five, of the most recently usedmeal plans at 513709 as returned from a service request made via thecloud platform. Alternatively, selection of available at 513708 presentsto a user all meals at 513710 as returned from a service request madevia the cloud platform with the meal plans organized by names of userscreating meals plans and the name of the meal plans each user created,enabling a user to browse the various meal plans to select the meal planof choice. On selection of a meal plan at either 513709 or 513710 theuser interface transitions to meal plan design setup at 513712. At513712 a user is presented a system-provided default name that a usermay accept or edit but a plan must have a name; a number of diners forthe meal with a default of 2 and a range of 1 to 10000; and an optionalmonetary budget with a default of no limit and accepting any monetaryvalue; wherein on either accepting the defaults or editing one or moreof the options, a user would then select cuisine at 513713 causing aservice call on the cloud platform to store the decision made by theuser for the options before transitioning the user interface. At 513713a user is presented a two-part selection user interface mechanismshowing on the left a cuisine origin and on the right cuisine optionsfor the chosen origin, for example the left selection would be but notlimited to American, European, Mexican, South American, Middle Eastern,Asian or Other, wherein the right selection for American would be butnot limited to Southern, New England, Amish, or Southwestern; forEuropean would be but not limited to French, Italian, German, Greek,Spanish, Portuguese, British Isles, or Scandinavian; for Mexican wouldbe but not limited to Traditional or Tex-Mex; for South American wouldbe but not limited to Peruvian or Brazilian; for Middle Eastern would bebut not limited to Turkish, Lebanese, or Persian; for Asian would be butnot limited to Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Vietnamese, Korean, or Indian;and Other would be but not limited to Caribbean or Name Your Own for auser provide their own cuisine style; and on user selection of a cuisineoption the selection is saved via a service to the cloud platform andthe user interface transitions to dietary restrictions at 513714. At513714 a user is presented potential dietary restrictions in ascrollable outline format where at each level of the outline a user isenabled to click something as a restriction that on clicking willcheck-on the chosen restriction plus everything embedded underneath itin the outline, wherein the outline would be but not limited to:

Vegetarian;

Vegan;

Allergic (Tree nuts, Write in option);

Health (Lactose, Gluten, Write in option);

Religious;

Kosher (pork, shellfish), No dairy, meat okay, No meat, dairy okay,Pareve (no meat or dairy);

Halal, Write in option; and/or

Taste, Write in option.

After a user completes checking all restrictions they know of, theywould choose compose meal at 513715 causing their selections to bestored via a web service to the cloud platform and therefore eliminatingcertain ingredients from meal preparation based on their selectionsbefore transitioning the user interface. At 513715 a user is presentedthree options for planning the meal being defining the courses at513716, selecting side dishes at 513717, and/or selecting drinks at513718. On selecting courses at 513716 a user is presented the threesystem-provided defaults in expected ultimate meal execution order ofappetizer course at 513719, main course at 513720, and dessert course at513721 but the user could alter the course selection and/or order bychoosing function selection 513704 to see two functions options toadd/remove a course at 513722 to either add one or more courses to themeal and/or remove one or more courses from the meal, as well as, afunction to rearrange the courses of the meal for when executing thepreparation and/or execution of the meal. At 513719 a user is presenteda left-right selection control with the left side being types of dishesto be provided being but not limited to Soup, Salad, Finger Foods,Dips/Sauces, and Other for one or more user-provided choices, where whena preset option is clicked the user interface presents a collection ofoptions set by the cuisine and dietary restrictions defined previouslyby the user with the options retrieved from web service(s) provided onthe cloud platform from which the user may select one or more options.On completion of option selections and/or definitions at 513719 a userwould select main course at 513720 with the software automaticallystoring the user's selections via web service(s) on the cloud platformbefore transitioning the user interface. At 513720 a user is presented aleft-right selection control with the left side being types of dishes tobe provided being but not limited to Poultry, Pork, Beef, Fish,Vegetarian, and Other for one or more user-provided choices, where whena preset option is clicked the user interface presents a collection ofoptions set by the cuisine and dietary restrictions defined previouslyby the user with the options retrieved from web service(s) provided onthe cloud platform from which the user may select one or more options.On completion of option selections and/or definitions at 513720 a userwould select dessert course at 513721 with the software automaticallystoring the user's selections via web service(s) on the cloud platformbefore transitioning the user interface. At 513721 a user is presented aleft-right selection control with the left side being types of dessertsto be provided being but not limited to Cake, Cookies, Pie, Ice Cream,Pastry, and Other for one or more user-provided choices, where when apreset option is clicked the user interface presents a collection ofoptions set by the cuisine and dietary restrictions defined previouslyby the user with the options retrieved from web service(s) provided onthe cloud platform from which the user may select one or more options.On completion of option selections and/or definitions at 513721 a userwould select the next course if one is available until the last courseis defined then select side dishes at 513717 with the softwareautomatically storing the user's selections via web service(s) on thecloud platform before transitioning the user interface. At 513717 a useris presented a left-right selection control with the left side beingtypes of side dishes to be provided being but not limited to Bread,Starch, Vegetable, Dips/Sauces, and Other for one or more user-providedchoices, where when a preset option is clicked the user interfacepresents a collection of options set by the cuisine and dietaryrestrictions defined previously by the user with the options retrievedfrom web service(s) provided on the cloud platform from which the usermay select one or more options. On completion of option selectionsand/or definitions at 513717 a user would select drinks at 513718 withthe software automatically storing the user's selections via webservice(s) on the cloud platform before transitioning the userinterface. At 513718 a user is presented a left-right selection controlwith the left side being types of drinks to be provided with sub-optionsof for alcohol at 513724 and non-alcohol at 513725 with options foralcohol being but not limited to Wine, Beer, Liquor, and Other for oneor more user-provided choices and options for non-alcohol being Soda,Juice, Water, and Other for one or more user-provided choices, wherewhen a preset option is clicked the user interface presents a collectionof options set by the cuisine and dietary restrictions definedpreviously by the user with the options retrieved from web service(s)provided on the cloud platform from which the user may select one ormore options, as well as, optionally associate each specific drink to aspecific course if the user desires that specificity. On completion ofoption selections and/or definitions at 513718 a user would selectconfirm at 513726 because their meal is now defined with the softwareautomatically storing the user's selections via web service(s) on thecloud platform before transitioning the user interface. At 513726 a useris presented a summary view of the meal they have planned to confirmthey made all the right choices, enabling a user to navigate to aprevious steps to alter any decisions they made in the process ofplanning the meal and if all their decision are in line with theirexpectations they would select confirm storing their meal plan via webservice(s) to the cloud platform for future use and on completion of theinvocation of web service(s) the user interface would transition back tostart at 513702. At 513702 a user could choose a function selection userinterface mechanism at 513704 seeing they are in a meal planner moduleand having three other modules available to them namely, an ingredientcollection module, a meal preparation module, and a meal executionmodule helping them follow through on their new meal plan using one ormore of these other modules

In another example, in a cooking and meal design MUI module, a processflow may be structured as follows. A first menu may permit a user toselect a type of meal, dinner, lunch, breakfast, formal, informal, etc.,that is being prepared. Selection of a type of meal may lead to a nextmenu permitting a user to select a number of dishes to be prepared. Anext menu may permit a user to select a cuisine style. A next menu maypermit a user to select dish options, filtered by the cuisine style, foreach dish. After completion of menu design, a recipe module may beselected. The recipe module may use a MUI as discussed herein to permita user to quickly navigate between recipes of dishes selected for amenu. For example, a first menu may include each dish. A second menu mayinclude options for ingredient lists and recipe steps. In this manner, auser might access the first menu in the historical portion to quicklyjump between recipes while viewing navigating ingredients and steps ofeach individual recipe in the active portion of the MUI.

In another example, a cooking and meal design MUI module may operate asfollows. A first menu may permit a user to select and define a pluralityof meal parameters. For example, in a first menu, a user may select frommenu items including cuisine selection, dietary restrictions, number ofdiners, meal design, wine pairing, and meal preparation.

Selecting the cuisine selection option permits a user access to a secondmenu of cuisine options, including, e.g., American, European, Mexican,Caribbean, South American, Middle Eastern, and Asian. Selecting fromamong the second menu options may lead to a third menu, for example, theAmerican selection may lead to Southern, Southwestern, Texan, NewEngland, Amish, Californian, etc., the European selection may lead toFrench, Italian, German, Greek, Spanish, Portuguese, British Isles,Scandinavian, etc., the South American selection may lead to Peruvian,Brazilian, etc., the Asian selection may lead to Chinese, Japanese,Vietnamese, Thai, Korean, Indian, etc. In embodiments, a user may selectmore than one cuisine option from the second menus that may provide afilter for other menus that a user may interact with.

Selecting the dietary restrictions option from the first menu permits auser to select from a second menu including options such as vegetarian,vegan, pescatarian, ovolacto vegetarian, allergies, health, religious,and taste. The vegetarian, vegan, pescatarian, and ovolacto vegetarianmenus may be execution menus permitting the user to apply theserestrictions as filters to meal choices and/or ingredients. The allergicand health menus lead to execution menus permitting a user to filteringredients that should be restricted due to health or allergic reasons,such as tree nuts and shellfish (allergic), lactose and gluten (health).Both menus may further permit a user to write in additional options. Thereligious menu permits a user to access menus that filter based onreligious dietary laws, such as Kosher or Halal restrictions. The Koshermenu selection offers a user execution menu including meat (filteringout all dairy options), pareve (filtering out all dairy and meatoptions), dairy (filtering out all meat options), Passover (filteringout all options including Chametz and/or Kitniyot). Executing any Koshermenu further serves to eliminate all non-Kosher ingredients, such aspork, shellfish, etc. The Halal menu selection offers a user anexecution menu permitting the filtering of menu ingredients according toHalal restrictions. The taste menu is an execution menu permitting auser to filter out ingredient selections by diner taste.

The number of diners menu is an execution menu permitting a user toselect a number of diners. Selecting the number of diners allows themodule to modify recipe amounts to match the number of people eating. Inembodiments, the number of diners menu may also allow a user to selectoptions such as light, medium, and heavy as a further modifier on anamount of food to be prepared.

The meal design or meal composition selection offers a second menu ofappetizer (which in turn offers a third menu of soup, salad, other),main course (which in turn offers a third menu of poultry, pork, beef,fish, vegetarian), side dishes (which in turn offers a third menu ofbread, starch (rice, potatoes, other, etc.), and vegetable), anddessert. As the user drills down through these menus, they may reachadditional menus providing menu items that correspond to the filtersselected in the other second menus (cuisine, dietary restrictions,etc.). In embodiments, dishes may be eliminated according to thefilters. In a further embodiment, dishes may include substitutes oreliminations based on the filters, e.g., oil for butter in a no-dairydish. Each menu item leads to one or more recipe selection executionmenus permitting the user to add the recipe to the final meal forpreparation. The choices described here are by way of example only, andthe meal composition submenu may include additional and/or differentmenus and hierarchy.

A wine pairing selection of the first menu offers a user second menupermitting selection of wines to match the selected dishes, e.g., byappetizer, main course, dessert, etc. After selecting a course to whicha user will pair wines, execution menus may be provided for a user toactively select wines by varietal, style, label, and other featuresaccording to the selected dishes for that course.

The meal preparation selection of the first menu offers the user acombined walkthrough of meal preparation using the MUI menuing system.The walkthrough provides a series of second menu items includingingredient requirements, make-ahead dishes, and day-of dishes. Theingredient requirements selections provide a shopping list permitting auser to eliminate items they already have. The make-ahead dish menu andday-of dish menu are both similar and allow the user to select betweenintegrated preparation and/or parallel preparation. The make-ahead dishmenu offers a user access to preparation steps for all dishes andingredients that may be prepared ahead of time, while the day-of dishmenu provides a user access to preparation steps that are preferably notprepared ahead of time. The parallel preparation menu permits a useraccess to each selected recipe in its entirety. The integratedpreparation menu permits a user access to the recipes in an integratedformat. In the integrated preparation menu, a submenu is provided basedon timing, e.g., 4 hours prior to meal-time, 3 hours prior to meal-time,2 hours prior to meal-time, etc. For example, accessing the “4 hoursprior” submenu provides the use with a list of tasks to complete 4 hoursprior to the meal. The 3 hours prior submenu provides tasks forcompletion 3 hours prior to the meal, and so on. In this way, themultiple tasks from each recipe can be combined, for example, if thesame ingredient needs chopping for more than one dish and integrated inthe most efficient manner possible. In another embodiment, an integratedpreparation submenu may be provided with menu items such as start maincourse, start appetizer, start side dish, complete main course, completeappetizer, complete side dish, etc. Accordingly, a chef's MUI module maypermit a user to design a meal and then may provide a full integrationof preparation steps.

In another example, the MUI may be applied to a travel guide, guidingthe user through a tour of any geographical region, including, forexample, one or more neighborhoods of a city, or intercity travel, orinterstate or inter-country travel. Content for the application mayinclude lists of potential destinations, street or road maps, and publictransit (e.g., bus, subway or metro, light rail, railroad) maps.

Destinations may be divided among different categories, including butnot limited to points of interest (e.g., museums, monuments, historicalsites, parks), dining and drinking establishments (e.g., restaurants andbars), retail establishments, medical facilities, and government officesand stations.

By way of example, the active menu first prompts the user to identifythe current geographical location. Alternatively, through connection ofthe device to a satellite-based radio navigation system (e.g., GPS), thecurrent location of the user can be automatically inputted. The activemenu then asks the user for one or more destinations. It may then ask ifthe user has a preferred transportation mode, including, for example,walking, driving, or mass transit, while presenting a calculatedestimate of time in transit for each such mode of transportation. TheMUI then provides the user a route or course, directing the user at eachstep. In direct workflow mode, the MUI presents the route with the keystops at exchange points. For example, and by way of illustration, thefirst selection is to start a five block walk from the user's currentlocation (e.g., a hotel) to metro station A. The second selection is toembark on metro train line 1 at station A on the way to metro station B.The third selection is to disembark the metro train line 1 at station Band switch to metro train line 2 on the way to metro station C. Thefourth selection is to disembark the metro train line 2 at station C onthe way to the bus stop for bus 3 at street intersection D. The fifthselection is to walk two blocks intersection D to board the bus 3. Thesixth selection is to disembark the bus at street intersection E. Theseventh selection is to walk three blocks from intersection E to theselected destination. These decision points may be tracked forpresentation (e.g., highlighting or positioned for selection) withactual geographic positioning through coordination with asatellite-based radio navigation system. As with other examples providedby the present disclosure, the past selections along the itineraryand/or the future selections to be made are presented at the secondportion (or either together in the second portion or separately insecond and third portions in an alternative embodiment for displayingboth) of the screen, while the active selection is presented in thefirst portion of the screen. At any point along the directed workflow,the user may select the advanced context menu, which presents the userwith a detailed street and/or transit map, capable of zooming in tostreet-by-street or station-by-station detail, or zooming out for ahigher level of detail (e.g., showing major streets and intersections ormajor and/or transfer stations). The user may then select variations ofthe direct workflow itinerary, such as diverting from the final 3 blockwalk to the selected destination and being presented an alternativeroute to visit an establishment identified on the detailed street map,such as a restaurant to have a meal before visiting the destination, ora convenience store to obtain an umbrella for completing the walk to theselected destination. Additionally, by way of example, the travelitinerary can be limited to fewer modes or even a single mode oftransportation, such as a walking tour of an historical district of acity, or be combined with additional modes, such as intercity railtransit.

In yet another example, a MUI as described herein may be implemented asan operating system or as an overlay to an operating system (OS). TheMUI, as described herein, makes user interaction with any system orworkflow more efficient by limiting exposure of items that areinfrequently used. This design principle and the hierarchical menu flowmay be applied, for example, to any aspect of an OS. For example, filetree navigation in Windows, Linux, Apple OS, etc., may be organized as ahierarchical menu tree as described herein, with lesser used optionsbeing limited from exposure and moved to a different menu, e.g., anadvanced context menu. As discussed herein, lesser used options mayrefer to options not meeting the threshold percentage of usagefrequency, e.g., 70%, 80%, 90%, or any other figure discussed herein. Auser, therefore, would only see the file tree options that they interactwith the most frequently unless they take steps to view other options.Apps on a mobile device operating system, iOS, Android, etc., may bearranged in the same way. Instead of being presented with multiplescreens full of app icons, as is conventional, the system may categorizea user's app icons and present the apps to a user according to ahierarchical menu tree with limited exposure of lesser used apps.

In another example, the exposure limiting design principles discussed inaccordance with the MUI may be applied to PUSH notifications. In thehierarchical menu trees, menu items that do not meet a thresholdpercentage of user interaction have their exposure limited. Similarly,push notifications to a user, e.g., alerts and notifications related totext messages, emails, app alerts, etc., may be limited based on userinteraction. For example, the split of 90%/10% or 80%/20% or any othersplit discussed herein may be applied, where types of pushnotifications, as characterized, e.g., by sender, subject, recipients,etc., that a user interacts with most frequently are prioritized andother notifications are moved to an auxiliary menu. The pushnotifications that a user interacts with or accesses 90% of the time or80% of the time, or any suitable number, may receive prioritizedtreatment, include vibration alerts, ring alerts, and immediate display.Other push notifications may be collected in a menu accessed onlythrough direct user action.

In another example, a MUI as described herein may be employed for homedesign or remodeling. A first menu may permit a user to select a type ofroom, kitchen, bath, etc., to be remodeled or designed. A second menumay permit a user to select from multiple styles, modern, contemporary,traditional, etc., while a third menu may permit a user to beginselecting individual aspects of the room to be remodeled, i.e., in thecase of a kitchen, cabinets, flooring, countertops, etc. In an examplesuch as this, the MUI may interact and/or interface with moreconventional design software to build and maintain a model of a user'sdesign as they make selections and develop a design.

In yet another example, a MUI as described herein may be applied tomedia content navigation for selecting television programs or movies towatch. For example, a first menu may permit a user to select a category,e.g., genre, release date, popularity, starring actors/actresses, etc.,by which they will browse media content. In some embodiments, eachsuccessive menu may provide similar options to the first menu,permitting the user to successively filter each next menu. In a MUIapplied to media content, exclusion tables may be used, for example, asa content filter to ensure that certain viewers do not have access toinappropriate content. Limitation lists, as discussed herein, may beused to filter and alter menus according to a user's typical viewinghabits.

Further embodiments include:

Embodiment 1 is a method of interactively navigating a user through apath of menu choices on a user interface in leading the user through acomputer application, the method performed automatically by at least onehardware processor, the method comprising: displaying a current menu ofchoices on a first portion of a user interface display; allowing a userto select a menu item from the current menu of choices displayed on thefirst portion of the user interface display and to drill down throughlevels of menu choices based on selecting a menu item from a prior levelof menu choices; displaying on a second portion of the user interfacedisplay, past selected and past unselected menu items of thedrilled-down levels, wherein the past unselected menu items aredisplayed as selectable options; and allowing the user to jump to adifferent path of menu choices by allowing the user to select a pastunselected menu item from a previously navigated menu level displayed onthe second portion of the user interface display, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are viewable concurrently on the userinterface display.

Embodiment 2 is the method of embodiment 1, wherein responsive todetecting a selection of a menu item from the current menu of choices,relocating the current menu of choices to the second portion of the userinterface display, and displaying on the first portion of the userinterface display a next level of menu choices based on the selection ofthe menu item, wherein the relocated current menu of choices is shown onthe second portion of the user interface display as the past selectedand past unselected menu items of a past menu level, and the next levelof menu choices is shown on the first portion as the current menu ofchoices.

Embodiment 3 is the method of embodiments 1 or 2, wherein the currentmenu of choices is displayed in first visual orientation on the firstportion of the user interface display and the drilled-down levels ofmenu choices comprising the past selected and past unselected menu itemsare displayed on the second portion of the user interface display insecond visual orientation.

Embodiment 4 is the method of embodiments 1 to 3, wherein the secondvisual orientation is substantially orthogonal to the first visualorientation.

Embodiment 5 is the method of embodiments 1 to 4, wherein the firstvisual orientation is a vertical orientation and the second visualorientation is a horizontal orientation.

Embodiment 6 is the method of embodiment 4 or 5, wherein the firstvisual orientation is a horizontal orientation and the second visualorientation is a vertical orientation.

Embodiment 7 is the method of embodiments 4 to 6, the drilled-downlevels of menu choices relocated to the second portion are displayed asa stack of menu levels.

Embodiment 8 is the method of embodiments 3 to 7, wherein the currentmenu of choices is displayed as a graphical rotating wheel that rotatesthe choices in a direction of the first visual orientation.

Embodiment 9 is the method of embodiments 3 to 8, wherein a drilled-downlevel in the drilled-down levels of menu choices is displayed as agraphical rotating wheel that rotates choices of the drilled-down levelin a direction of the second visual orientation.

Embodiment 10 is the method of embodiments 1 to 9, wherein the pastselected menu items in the drilled-down levels displayed on the secondportion of the user interface display are displayed highlighted relativeto the past unselected menu items of the drilled-down levels displayedon the second portion of the user interface display.

Embodiment 11 is the method of embodiments 1 to 10, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are displayed as a series of concentriccircles.

Embodiment 12 is the method of embodiments 1 to 11, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are displayed in a graphical decisiontree configuration.

Embodiment 13 is the method of embodiments 1 to 12, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are shifted to substantially center thefirst portion displaying the current menu of choices on the userinterface display while fitting both the first portion and the secondportion on the user interface display.

Embodiment 14 is a user interface system comprising: at least onehardware processor; and a memory device operatively coupled to thehardware processor, the hardware processor operable to retrieve from thememory device a current menu of choices and to display current menu ofchoices on a first portion of a user interface display, the hardwareprocessor further operable to allow a user to select a menu item fromthe current menu of choices displayed on the first portion of the userinterface display and to drill down through levels of menu choices basedon selecting a menu item from a prior level of menu choices, thehardware processor displaying on a second portion of the user interfacedisplay, past selected and past unselected menu items of thedrilled-down levels, wherein the past unselected menu items aredisplayed as selectable options, the hardware processor further operableto allow the user to jump to a different path of menu choices byallowing the user to select a past unselected menu item from apreviously navigated menu level displayed on the second portion of theuser interface display, wherein the first portion and the second portionare viewable concurrently on the user interface display.

Embodiment 15 is the system of embodiment 14, wherein responsive todetecting a selection of a menu item from the current menu of choices,the hardware processor relocating the current menu of choices to thesecond portion of the user interface display, and displaying on thefirst portion of the user interface display a next level of menu choicesbased on the selection of the menu item, wherein the relocated currentmenu of choices is shown on the second portion of the user interfacedisplay as the past selected and past unselected menu items of a pastmenu level, and the next level of menu choices is shown on the firstportion as the current menu of choices.

Embodiment 16 is the system of embodiment 15, wherein the current menuof choices is displayed in first visual orientation on the first portionof the user interface display and the drilled-down levels of menuchoices comprising the past selected and past unselected menu items aredisplayed on the second portion of the user interface display in secondvisual orientation.

Embodiment 17 is the system of embodiment 16, wherein the second visualorientation is substantially orthogonal to the first visual orientation.

Embodiment 18 is the system of embodiment 17, wherein the first visualorientation is a vertical orientation and the second visual orientationis a horizontal orientation.

Embodiment 19 is the system of embodiments 17 or 18, wherein the firstvisual orientation is a horizontal orientation and the second visualorientation is a vertical orientation.

Embodiment 20 is the system of embodiments 17 to 19, the drilled-downlevels of menu choices relocated to the second portion are displayed asa stack of menu levels.

Embodiment 21 is the system of embodiments 16 to 20, wherein the currentmenu of choices is displayed as a graphical rotating wheel that rotatesthe choices in a direction of the first visual orientation.

Embodiment 22 is the system of embodiments 16 to 21, wherein adrilled-down level in the drilled-down levels of menu choices isdisplayed as a graphical rotating wheel that rotates choices of thedrilled-down level in a direction of the second visual orientation.

Embodiment 23 is the system of embodiments 14 to 22, wherein the pastselected menu items in the drilled-down levels displayed on the secondportion of the user interface display are displayed highlighted relativeto the past unselected menu items of the drilled-down levels displayedon the second portion of the user interface display.

Embodiment 24 is the system of embodiments 14 to 23, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are displayed as a series of concentriccircles.

Embodiment 25 is the system of embodiment 14 to 24, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are displayed in a graphical decisiontree configuration.

Embodiment 26 is the system of embodiment 14 to 25, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are shifted to substantially center thefirst portion displaying the current menu of choices on the userinterface display while fitting both the first portion and the secondportion on the user interface display.

Embodiment 27 is a computer readable storage medium storing a program ofinstructions executable by a machine to perform a method ofinteractively navigating a user through a path of menu choices on a userinterface in leading the user through a computer application, the methodcomprising: displaying a current menu of choices on a first portion of auser interface display; allowing a user to select a menu item from thecurrent menu of choices displayed on the first portion of the userinterface display and to drill down through levels of menu choices basedon selecting a menu item from a prior level of menu choices; displayingon a second portion of the user interface display, past selected andpast unselected menu items of the drilled-down levels, wherein the pastunselected menu items are displayed as selectable options; allowing theuser to jump to a different path of menu choices by allowing the user toselect a past unselected menu item from a previously navigated menulevel displayed on the second portion of the user interface display,wherein the first portion and the second portion are viewableconcurrently on the user interface display.

Embodiment 28 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiment 27,wherein responsive to detecting a selection of a menu item from thecurrent menu of choices, relocating the current menu of choices to thesecond portion of the user interface display, and displaying on thefirst portion of the user interface display a next level of menu choicesbased on the selection of the menu item, wherein the relocated currentmenu of choices is shown on the second portion of the user interfacedisplay as the past selected and past unselected menu items of a pastmenu level, and the next level of menu choices is shown on the firstportion as the current menu of choices.

Embodiment 29 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiment 28,wherein the current menu of choices is displayed in first visualorientation on the first portion of the user interface display and thedrilled-down levels of menu choices comprising the past selected andpast unselected menu items are displayed on the second portion of theuser interface display in second visual orientation.

Embodiment 30 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiment 29,wherein the second visual orientation is substantially orthogonal to thefirst visual orientation.

Embodiment 31 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiment 30,wherein the first visual orientation is a vertical orientation and thesecond visual orientation is a horizontal orientation.

Embodiment 32 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 30to 31, wherein the first visual orientation is a horizontal orientationand the second visual orientation is a vertical orientation.

Embodiment 33 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 30to 32, the drilled-down levels of menu choices relocated to the secondportion are displayed as a stack of menu levels.

Embodiment 34 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 29to 33, wherein the current menu of choices is displayed as a graphicalrotating wheel that rotates the choices in a direction of the firstvisual orientation.

Embodiment 35 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 2934, wherein a drilled-down level in the drilled-down levels of menuchoices is displayed as a graphical rotating wheel that rotates choicesof the drilled-down level in a direction of the second visualorientation.

Embodiment 36 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 27to 35, wherein the past selected menu items in the drilled-down levelsdisplayed on the second portion of the user interface display aredisplayed highlighted relative to the past unselected menu items of thedrilled-down levels displayed on the second portion of the userinterface display.

Embodiment 37 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 27to 36, wherein the first portion and the second portion are displayed asa series of concentric circles.

Embodiment 38 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 27to 37, wherein the first portion and the second portion are displayed ina graphical decision tree configuration.

Embodiment 39 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 27to 38, wherein the first portion and the second portion are displayed inparallel in a same visual orientation.

Embodiment 40 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 27to 39, wherein the first portion and the second portion are shifted tosubstantially center the first portion displaying the current menu ofchoices on the user interface display while fitting both the firstportion and the second portion on the user interface display.

Embodiment 41 is the computer readable storage medium of embodiments 27to 40, wherein the user interface navigates the user through an assaysystem while presenting a minimal number of menu choices the user needsto make for navigating through the assay system.

Embodiment 42 is the method of interactively navigating a user through apath of menu choices on a user interface in leading the user through acomputer application, the method performed automatically by at least onehardware processor, the method comprising: displaying a current menu ofchoices on a first portion of a user interface display; allowing a userto select a menu item from the current menu of choices displayed on thefirst portion of the user interface display and to drill down throughlevels of menu choices based on selecting a menu item from a prior levelof menu choices; and displaying on a second portion of the userinterface display, past selected and past unselected menu items of thedrilled-down levels, wherein the past unselected menu items aredisplayed as selectable options; wherein the first portion and thesecond portion are viewable concurrently on the user interface display;and wherein the graphical user interface maximizes black space by makinga background of the user interface display black to thereby save storageand improve speed of presentation.

Embodiment 43 is the method of embodiment 42, wherein responsive todetecting a selection of a menu item from the current menu of choices,relocating the current menu of choices to the second portion of the userinterface display, and displaying on the first portion of the userinterface display a next level of menu choices based on the selection ofthe menu item, wherein the relocated current menu of choices is shown onthe second portion of the user interface display as the past selectedand past unselected menu items of a past menu level, and the next levelof menu choices is shown on the first portion as the current menu ofchoices.

Embodiment 44 is the method of embodiment 42 or 43, wherein the currentmenu of choices is displayed in first visual orientation on the firstportion of the user interface display and the drilled-down levels ofmenu choices comprising the past selected and past unselected menu itemsare displayed on the second portion of the user interface display insecond visual orientation.

Embodiment 45 is the method of embodiment 43 or 44, wherein the secondvisual orientation is substantially orthogonal to the first visualorientation.

Embodiment 46 is the method of embodiments 44 or 45, wherein the firstvisual orientation is a vertical orientation and the second visualorientation is a horizontal orientation.

Embodiment 47 is the method of embodiments 44 to 46, wherein the firstvisual orientation is a horizontal orientation and the second visualorientation is a vertical orientation.

Embodiment 48 is the method of embodiments 44 to 47, the drilled-downlevels of menu choices relocated to the second portion are displayed asa stack of menu levels.

Embodiment 49 is the method of embodiments 43 to 48, wherein the currentmenu of choices is displayed as a graphical rotating wheel that rotatesthe choices in a direction of the first visual orientation.

Embodiment 50 is the method of embodiments 42 to 49, wherein adrilled-down level in the drilled-down levels of menu choices isdisplayed as a graphical rotating wheel that rotates choices of thedrilled-down level in a direction of the second visual orientation.

Embodiment 51 is the method of embodiments 42 to 50, wherein the pastselected menu items in the drilled-down levels displayed on the secondportion of the user interface display are displayed highlighted relativeto the past unselected menu items of the drilled-down levels displayedon the second portion of the user interface display.

Embodiment 52 is the method of embodiments 42 to 51, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are displayed as a series of concentriccircles.

Embodiment 53 is the method of embodiments 42 to 52, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are displayed in a graphical decisiontree configuration.

Embodiment 54 is the method of embodiments 42 to 53, wherein the firstportion and the second portion are shifted to substantially center thefirst portion displaying the current menu of choices on the userinterface display while fitting both the first portion and the secondportion on the user interface display.

Embodiment 55 is the method of embodiments 42 to 54, further comprisingallowing the user to jump to a different path of menu choices byallowing the user to select a past unselected menu item from apreviously navigated menu level displayed on the second portion of theuser interface display.

Embodiment 56 is the method of interactively navigating a user through apath of menu choices on a user interface in leading the user through acomputer application, the method performed automatically by at least onehardware processor, the method comprising: displaying a current menu ofchoices on a first portion of a user interface display; allowing a userto select a menu item from the current menu of choices displayed on thefirst portion of the user interface display and to drill down throughlevels of menu choices based on selecting a menu item from a prior levelof menu choices; displaying on a second portion of the user interfacedisplay, past selected and past unselected menu items of thedrilled-down levels, wherein the past unselected menu items aredisplayed as selectable options, wherein the first portion and thesecond portion are viewable concurrently on the user interface display,wherein at least the first portion includes a search function box, asub-first area and a sub-second area, wherein the first portion isscrollable as a whole and shows the current menu of choices, whereinresponsive the detecting an entry of a search term in the searchfunction box, the first portion is bifurcated into the sub-first areaand sub-second area that are scrollable individually.

Embodiment 57 is the method of embodiment 56, wherein the sub-secondarea displays a subset of the current menu choices that matches thesearch term.

Embodiment 58 is the method of embodiment 56 or 57, wherein thesub-second area displays the current menu of choices.

Embodiment 59 is the method of embodiments 56 to 58, wherein thesub-first area displays a recently chosen menu item.

Embodiment 60 is the method of embodiments 56 to 59, wherein the firstportion is rendered on the user interface display as a graphical wheel.

Embodiment 61 is a method of interactively navigating a user through apath of menu choices on a user interface in leading the user through acomputer application, the method performed automatically by at least onehardware processor, the method comprising: displaying a current menu ofchoices on a first portion of a user interface display; allowing a userto select a menu item from the current menu of choices displayed on thefirst portion of the user interface display and to drill down throughlevels of menu choices based on selecting a menu item from a prior levelof menu choices; displaying on a second portion of the user interfacedisplay, past selected and past unselected menu items of thedrilled-down levels, wherein the past unselected menu items aredisplayed as selectable options, wherein the first portion and thesecond portion are viewable concurrently on the user interface display,wherein the current menu of choices is displayed as a graphical rotatingwheel that rotates the choices, wherein the graphical rotating wheel isrotatable from a first menu item in the current menu of choices to alast menu item in the current menu of choices, and the graphicalrotating wheel is further rotatable from the last menu item to the firstmenu item, and the first menu item and the last menu item do not connectin the graphical rotating wheel's rotation.

Embodiment 62 is the method of embodiment 61, wherein the graphicalrotating wheel is a vertical wheel that rotates vertically.

Embodiment 63 is the method of embodiment 61 or 62, wherein thegraphical rotating wheel is a horizontal wheel that rotateshorizontally.

Embodiment 64 is a method executed by at least one hardware processorfor navigating a path of hierarchical menu levels outputted to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing a firstcommand for a first menu of user-selectable choices to be displayed on afirst portion of a user interface (UI) display; and providing a secondcommand for a second menu of user-selectable choices to be displayed onthe first portion of the UI display in response to a user's selection,wherein the second portion includes one or more of a past-selected and apast-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and is adaptedto be concurrently viewed with the first portion.

Embodiment 65 is the method of embodiment 64 further comprising anadvanced context menu, wherein the advanced context menu is adapted tobe displayed in response to a selection of an advanced selector.

Embodiment 66 is the method of embodiment 65 or 64, wherein the advancedcontext menu includes one or more of the following user-selectedchoices: Export; Admin Console; Admin Audit Trail; Terms of Use; PrivacyPolicy; and Log out.

Embodiment 67 is the method of embodiments 64 to 66, wherein in responseto a selection of Admin Audit Trail choice, the first portion is adaptedto display audit information that includes one or more of the following:a timestamp, a user name and/or email address, module, record ID, type,message, category, code, and IP address of a user.

Embodiment 68 is the method of embodiment 67, wherein the auditinformation includes information relating to one or more of all users,accounts, and teams.

Embodiment 69 is the method of embodiment 67 or 68, wherein the auditinformation includes information relating to a particular team selectedamong previously added teams.

Embodiment 70 is the method of embodiment 69 further comprisingproviding a command to display an audit menu that includes thepreviously added teams in response to a selection of the Admin AuditTrail choice.

Embodiment 71 is the method of embodiment 67 embodiments 64 to 70,wherein the audit information is adapted to be exported to a user inresponse to a selection of the Export choice.

Embodiment 72 is the method of embodiments 64 to 72, wherein the secondportion is adapted to display an audit menu for a user to select allaudit information to be available for display, or to narrow the auditinformation to be displayed by one or more teams and/or instruments.

Embodiment 73 is the method of embodiments 66 to 72, wherein in responseto a selection of Admin Audit Trail choice, the advanced context menuincludes one or more of the following choices: Export and Copy toClipboard.

Embodiment 74 is the method of embodiments 64 to 73, further comprisingan advanced context menu, wherein the advanced context menu is adaptedto be displayed in response to a selection of an advanced selector.

Embodiment 75 is the method of embodiments 64 to 74, wherein the firstmenu of user-selectable choices includes one or more of the followingchoices: Read; and Review Recent Results.

Embodiment 76 is the method of embodiment 75, wherein in response to aselection of the Read command, the second portion of the UI display isadapted to output a Play Button.

Embodiment 77 is the method of embodiment 76, wherein in response to aselection of the Play Button, a plate reader is adapted begin readingone or more plates.

Embodiment 78 is the method of embodiment 77, wherein in furtherresponse to the selection of the Play Button, the UI display is adaptedto display a timer, wherein the timer is adapted to indicate one or moreof: the total amount of time to load the one or more plates; the totalamount of time to read the one or more plates; the total amount of timeto unload the one or more plates; the time remaining to complete theloading of the one or more plates; the time remaining to complete thereading of the one or more plates; and the time remaining to completethe unloading of the one or more plates.

Embodiment 79 is the method of embodiments 74 to 78, wherein theadvanced context menu includes one or more of the followinguser-selectable choices: Eject Plate; Partial Plate; Set Plate Run; StopInstrument; Lock UI; and View Plate Information.

Embodiment 80 is the method of embodiment 79, wherein in response to aselection of the Partial Plate choice, the first portion is adapted toreceive bar code information as it relates a plate selected among theone or more plates.

Embodiment 81 is the method of embodiment 80, wherein the first portionis further adapted to display a user-selectable option that, whenselected, verifies the authenticity the received bar code information.

Embodiment 82 is the method of embodiment 79 to 81, wherein further inresponse to the Partial Plate choice, the advanced context menu includesone or more of the following choices: Save Partial Plate; and CancelPartial Plate.

Embodiment 83 is the method of embodiment 79 to 83, wherein in responseto a selection of the Set Plate Run choice, the first portion is adaptedto receive a name for a plate run associated with a plate.

Embodiment 84 is the method of embodiment 79 to 84, wherein in responseto a selection of the Stop Instrument choice, which the first portion isadapted to display a confirmation choice before issuing a stopinstrument command.

Embodiment 85 is the method of embodiment 84, wherein the confirmationchoice, when selected, is adapted to either abort the current run of aplate by issuing the stop instrument command or continuing the run bydisregarding the stop instrument command.

Embodiment 86 is the method of embodiment 79 to 85, wherein in responseto a selection of the Lock UI choice, the UI display is adapted to belocked from user selections until receiving the current user's password.

Embodiment 87 is the method of embodiment 79 to 86, wherein in responseto a selection of the View Plate Information choice, the first portionis adapted to display Plate Information including one or more of thefollowing: plate run name, plate barcode, long side customer barcode,short side customer barcode, plate type, operator, and read time.

Embodiment 88 is the method of embodiment 79 to 87, wherein in responseto a selection of the Eject Plate choice, a plate is ejecting from aplate-reading instrument.

Embodiment 89 is the method of embodiment 64 to 88, wherein the firstmenu of user-selectable choices includes one or more of the followingchoices: Define Roles and Permissions; Add/Remove members; AssignMembers to Roles; and Authorize and Inform Members.

Embodiment 90 is the method of embodiment 89, wherein the first portionincludes two or more subsections of user-selectable choices from thesecond menu.

Embodiment 91 is the method of embodiment 90, wherein in response to aselection of Define Roles and Permissions, a first subsection ofuser-selectable choices includes one or more of the following choices:Lab Manager; Designer; Associate; Operator (Base); and Maintenance Tech(Base).

Embodiment 92 is the method of embodiment 91, wherein in response to aselection of one or more of: (a) Lab Manager; (b) Designer; or (c)Associate, a second subsection of user-selectable choices includes oneor more of the following choices: Analysis Method; Assay Method;Experiment; Assay Engine; Audit Trail; Maintenance; Reader; and System.

Embodiment 93 is the method of embodiment 91 or 92, wherein in responseto a selection of one or more of (a) Operator (Base) or (b) MaintenanceTech (Base), a second subsection of user-selectable choices includes oneor more of the following choices: Assay Engine; Audit Trail;Maintenance; Reader; and System.

Embodiment 94 is the method of embodiment 91 to 93, wherein in responseto a selection of Analysis Method, a third subsection of user-selectablechoices includes a Run Analysis Method choice.

Embodiment 95 is the method of embodiment 91 to 94, wherein in responseto a selection of Assay Method, a third subsection of user-selectablechoices includes a Run Assay Method choice.

Embodiment 96 is the method of embodiment 91 to 95, wherein in responseto a selection of Experiment, a third subsection of user-selectablechoices includes one or more of the following choices: CreateExperiment; Edit Layout; Exclude/Include Data Points; Export Data Table;Export Sample Result Table; and View Experiment.

Embodiment 97 is the method of one of embodiment 91 to 96, wherein inresponse to a selection of Assay Engine Method, a third subsection ofuser-selectable choices includes one or more of the following choices:Export Data Table; Modify Instrument Settings; Override MesoscaleDiagnostics Kit Lot Assignment; Retry Inventory Validation; RunInstrument; and Show ECL for Unverified Run.

Embodiment 98 is the method of one of embodiment 91 to 97, wherein inresponse to a selection of Audit Trail, a third subsection ofuser-selectable choices includes a View Audit Trail App choice.

Embodiment 99 is the method of one of embodiments 91 to 98, wherein inresponse to a selection of Maintenance, a third subsection ofuser-selectable choices includes one or more of the following choices:Run Maintenance; Run Maintenance Method; and View Maintenance Records.

Embodiment 100 is the method of one of embodiments 91 to 99, wherein inresponse to a selection of Reader, a third subsection of user-selectablechoices includes one or more of the following choices: Manage Database;Modify Instrument Settings; and Run Instrument.

Embodiment 101 is the method of one of embodiments 91 to 100, wherein inresponse to a selection of System, a third subsection of user-selectablechoices includes one or more of the following choices: Modify SystemSettings; and Unlock App Locked by Any User.

Embodiment 102 is the method of embodiments 90 to 102, wherein inresponse to a selection of the Add/Remove Members choice, the secondmenu of user-selectable choices includes previously added usernamesand/or email addresses, further wherein one or more of the usernamesand/or email addresses are adapted to be deleted from the second menu ofuser-selectable choices in response to a user's deletion input.

Embodiment 103 is the method of embodiment 102, wherein in furtherresponse to the selection of the Add/Remove Members choice, the secondmenu is adapted to receive new usernames and/or email addresses to addamong the previously added usernames and/or email addresses.

Embodiment 104 is the method of embodiment 103, wherein in response tothe user's deletion input, a confirmation screen is adapted to bedisplayed on the first portion of the user interface display, furtherwherein the confirmation screen is adapted to display user-selectablechoices that include Cancel and OK.

Embodiment 105 is the method of embodiments 90 to 104, wherein inresponse to a selection of Assign Members to Roles, a first subsectionof user-selectable choices includes previously added usernames and/oremail addresses and the second subsection includes one or more of thefollowing role-assignment choices: Lab Manager; Designer; Associate;Operator (Base); and Maintenance Tech (Base).

Embodiment 106 is the method of embodiment 105, wherein selections fromthe first- and second-subsections are adapted to create an associationamong one or more of the previously added usernames and/or emailaddresses with one or more of the role-assignment choices.

Embodiment 107 is the method of embodiment 106, wherein associationamong the one or more of the previously added usernames and/or emailaddresses with one or more of the role-assignment choices is adapted tobe displayed on the UI in response to a selection of the Authorize andInform Members choice.

Embodiment 108 is the method of embodiment 107, wherein in response to aselection of the Authorize and Inform Member choice, the first portionis adapted to display an Authorize and Email Install Instructionschoice.

Embodiment 109 is the method of embodiment 108, wherein role-assignmentinformation and/or instructions are adapted to be transmitted to thepreviously added email addresses in response to a selection of Authorizeand Email Install Instructions choice.

Embodiment 110 is the method of embodiments 64 to 109, wherein the firstmenu of user-selectable choices includes one or more of the followingchoices: Prepare Teams; Define Administrators; and Manage Teams.

Embodiment 111 is the method of embodiment 110, wherein in response to aselection of Prepare Teams choice, the second menu of user-selectablechoices includes one or more previously added teams.

Embodiment 112 is the method of embodiments 110 to 111, wherein inresponse to a selection of the Prepare Teams choice, the second menu ofuser-selectable choices is adapted to receive one or more new teams toadd among the one or more previously added teams.

Embodiment 113 is the method of embodiments 110 to 112, wherein inresponse to a selection of the Prepare Teams choice, the second portionis adapted to display one or more of a number of available teamsdefined, a number of available seats assigned, a total number ofavailable teams, and a total number of available seats.

Embodiment 114 is the of embodiments 110 to 113, wherein in response toa selection of Define Administrators choice, the second menu ofuser-selectable choices includes previously added usernames and/or emailaddresses, further wherein one or more of the usernames and/or emailaddresses are adapted to be deleted from the second menu ofuser-selectable choices in response to a user's deletion input.

Embodiment 115 is the method of embodiments 110 to 114, wherein furtherin response to a selection of the Define Administrators choice, thesecond menu of user-selectable choices is adapted to receive newusernames and/or email addresses to add among the previously addedusernames and/or email addresses.

Embodiment 116 is the method of embodiments 111 to 115, wherein thesecond portion is adapted to display the one or more previously addedteams as a menu of choices.

Embodiment 117 is the method of embodiment 116, wherein the previouslyadded usernames and/or email addresses are associated with a particularteam among the one or more previously added teams from the menu ofchoices.

Embodiment 118 is the method of embodiment 117, wherein in response to aselection of the Define Administrators choice, the first portion isadapted to display an Authorize and Email choice.

Embodiment 119 is the method of embodiment 118, wherein authorizationsand/or team-assignment information are adapted to be transmitted to thepreviously added email addresses in response to a selection of theAuthorize and Email Install Instructions choice.

Embodiment 120 is the method of embodiments 111 to 119, wherein thefirst menu of user-selectable choices identified in embodiment 89 aredisplayed in response to a selection of the Manage Teams choice:

Embodiment 121 is the method of embodiments 64 to 120 further comprisingan advanced context menu, wherein the advanced context menu is adaptedto be displayed in response to a selection of an advanced selector.

Embodiment 122 is the method of embodiment 121, wherein in response to aselection of Admin Audit Trail choice, the advanced context menuincludes one or more of the following choices: Resend installinstruction, Import, and Change Team Name, Change Account Name, ChangePassword Expiration.

Embodiment 123 is the method of embodiment 64 further comprisingproviding, by the at least one processor, a relocation command for thefirst menu to be relocated to the second portion of the UI display inresponse to the user's selection, wherein the second menu comprises asubsequent level of menu items for the user to select.

Embodiment 124 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123, whereinthe subsequent level of menu items comprises one or more user-selectablemenu items at least one hierarchical menu level lower than the firstmenu.

Embodiment 125 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 124,wherein the subsequent level of menu items comprises one or moreuser-selectable menu items at more than one hierarchical menu levellower than the first menu.

Embodiment 126 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 125,wherein the past-unselected menu item includes a previously navigatedhierarchical menu level.

Embodiment 127 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 126wherein the first portion comprises an active portion, which includesone or more current, user-selectable menu items, and the second portioncomprises a historical portion, which includes menu items previouslymade available to a user.

Embodiment 128 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 127,wherein the first portion and the second portion are adapted to bedisplayed in a first visual orientation and a second visual orientation,respectively.

Embodiment 129 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 128wherein the second visual orientation is substantially orthogonal to thefirst visual orientation.

Embodiment 130 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 129wherein the first visual orientation is a vertical orientation and thesecond visual orientation is a horizontal orientation.

Embodiment 131 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 130wherein the first visual orientation is configured to provide one ormore user-selectable menu items in one or more of a vertical,horizontal, or concentric orientation.

Embodiment 132 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 131wherein the second visual orientation is configured to provideuser-selectable menu items in one or more of a vertical, horizontal, orconcentric orientation.

Embodiment 133 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 132wherein a manner in which the menu items are adapted to be displayed isbased on an attribute selected from one or more of: (a) being theselected menu item; (b) having a position in a list more centralrelative to other menu items in the list; (c) being available orunavailable to the user; (d) containing one or more characters typed bya user; and (e) being part of an advanced context menu.

Embodiment 134 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 133wherein the manner in which the menu items are adapted to be displayedincludes one or both of: (a) emphasizing menu items that are one or moreof: the selected menu item, positioned in a decision-making zone, oravailable to the user; and (b) deemphasizing menu items that are one ormore of: not the selected menu item, positioned away from thedecision-making zone, or unavailable to the user.

Embodiment 135 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 134wherein menu items are adapted to be emphasized by one or more ofhighlighting, bolding, making larger, underlining, or positioning on theUI display relative to other menu items.

Embodiment 136 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 135,wherein menu items are adapted to be deemphasized by one or more offading, making smaller, or positioning on the UI display relative toother menu items.

Embodiment 137 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 136,wherein the decision-making zone is adapted to be displayed in acentrally located area.

Embodiment 138 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 137wherein the first and second menus are adapted to be displayed on abackground, which is adapted to be displayed in a manner that contrastswith the first and second menus.

Embodiment 139 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 138wherein the second portion is adapted to be displayed across a smallerarea than the first portion.

Embodiment 140 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 139wherein the first visual orientation is one or more of parallel,orthogonal, vertical, horizontal, and concentric to the second visualorientation.

Embodiment 141 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 140wherein the each of the providing steps is performed by the processor byexecuting a computer application stored on a machine.

Embodiment 142 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 141wherein the computer application comprises an application formanipulating, designing, performing, reviewing, measuring, or analyzingan experiment.

Embodiment 143 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 142wherein the experiment comprises one or more assays.

Embodiment 144 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 143wherein the experiment comprises one or more electrochemiluminescenceassays.

Embodiment 145 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 144further comprising providing a limiting command to limit the totalnumber of menu items to be displayed based on at least one of thefollowing criteria: (a) frequency with which a user has previouslyselected the menu item while logged into his/her account; (b) frequencywith which at least two users have previously selected the menu itemwhile logged into an account; (c) frequency with which a user haspreviously selected the menu item while logged into an accountassociated with multiple accounts; (d) frequency with which at least twousers have previously selected the menu item while logged into one ormore accounts associated with multiple accounts; (e) frequency withwhich any users have previously selected the menu item while logged intoany account; and (f) frequency with which any users have previouslyselected the menu item while logged into any account associated withmultiple accounts.

Embodiment 146 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 145,wherein the multiple accounts of elements (c), (d), and (f) are accountsassociated with a team and the users are team members of the one or moreteam associated with the multiple accounts.

Embodiment 147 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 146further comprising providing an exclusion command to exclude menu itemsto be displayed based on at least one of the following criteria: (a)menu items designated as unavailable in a present module; (b) menu itemsdesignated as unavailable to a user; (c) menu items designated asunavailable to an aggregation of users; (d) menu items designated asunavailable to a particular machine storing the one or more copies ofthe computer application; and (e) menu items designated as unavailableto an aggregation of machines, each storing one or more copies of thecomputer application.

Embodiment 148 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 147wherein the frequency is determined over a defined time period.

Embodiment 149 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 148wherein the frequency is 50% or more.

Embodiment 150 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 149wherein the frequency is 80% or more.

Embodiment 151 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 150,wherein the first and second menus are adapted to collectively displayfewer than seven user-selectable menu items at any given point in time.

Embodiment 152 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 151,wherein the background comprises pixels, wherein at least 75% of thepixels are monochromatic.

Embodiment 153 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 152,wherein the background comprises pixels, wherein at least 75% of thepixels are black.

Embodiment 154 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 153,further comprising providing a third command for a third menu of one ormore user-selectable menu items to be displayed on a third portion ofthe UI display, wherein the third menu is adapted to be concurrentlyviewed with the first and second portions of the UI display.

Embodiment 155 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 154further comprising: providing a third command for a third menu ofuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on the first portion of theUI display in response to a user's selection from the second menu,wherein the one or more of a past-selected menu item and apast-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels from thesecond menu is adapted to be displayed on the second portion andconcurrently viewed with the first portion.

Embodiment 156 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 123 to 155,wherein the second portion further comprises a subsequent menu, whereinthe subsequent menu comprises one or more of a past-selected sub-menuitem and a past-unselected subsequent menu item selected among at leastone lower hierarchical menu level of one or more of the first, second,and third menus.

Embodiment 157 is a system for navigating a path of hierarchical menulevels adapted for output to a graphical user interface (GUI), thesystem comprising at least one processor; a user input device; and acomputer readable storage medium configured to store a computerapplication, wherein the at least one processor is configured to executeinstructions of the computer application for providing a first commandfor a first menu of one or more user-selectable menu items to bedisplayed on a first portion of a user interface (UI) display, andproviding a second command for a second menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on the first portion of theUI display in response to a user's selection, wherein the first menu isadapted to be displayed on a second portion of the UI display andcomprises one or more of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselectedmenu item of the hierarchical menu levels and is adapted to beconcurrently viewed with the second menu in the first portion.

Embodiment 158 is a non-transitory computer readable medium havingcomputer instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor,cause the processor to carry out a method for navigating a path ofhierarchical menu levels adapted for output to a graphical userinterface (GUI), the method comprising: providing a first command for afirst menu of one or more user-selectable menu items to be displayed ona first portion of a user interface (UI) display; and providing a secondcommand for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menu items tobe displayed on the first portion of the UI display in response to auser's selection, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on asecond portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in the first portion.

Embodiment 159 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 124 to 156,further comprising an Advanced context menu, wherein the Advancedcontext menu is adapted to be displayed in response to a selection of anadvanced selector.

Embodiment 160 is the method of any of embodiments 1-35 and embodiment159, wherein the first menu comprises one or more of Design Assay Methodand Review Assay Method.

Embodiment 161 is the method of embodiment 160, wherein the second menuis a subsequent menu of Design Assay Method and comprises one or more ofManual Assay Method and Automated Assay Method in response to aselection of Design Assay Method.

Embodiment 162 is the method of embodiment 161, wherein the third menucomprises one or more name of recent assay methods in response to aselection of Manual Assay Methods or Automated Assay Methods.

Embodiment 163 is the method of embodiment 162, wherein the third menuincludes one or more user-selectable choice selected from names ofrecent Assay Methods.

Embodiment 164 is the method of embodiments 160-163, further comprisingproviding a fourth command for a fourth menu of user-selectable items tobe displayed on the first portion of the UI display in response to auser's selection from the third menu, wherein the one or more of apast-selected and a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menulevels from the first, second, and third menu is adapted to be displayedon the second portion and concurrently viewed with the first portion.

Embodiment 165 is the method of embodiment 164, wherein the secondportion includes one or more of Recent and Available.

Embodiment 166 is the method of 164, wherein in response to a selectionof a recent Assay Method, the second portion comprises one or morechoices selected from Assay, Layout, Analysis Method, Protocol, andConfirm.

Embodiment 167 is the method of embodiment 166, wherein the fourth menuis a subsequent menu of Assay and comprises one or more of a firstsubsection and a second subsection, wherein the first subsectioncomprises a spot layout and list of associated assays for the selectedAssay Method and the second sub-section comprises a list of availableassays for the selected Assay Method.

Embodiment 168 is the method of embodiment 166, wherein the third menuis a subsequent menu of Layout and comprises a plate layout.

Embodiment 169 is the method of embodiment 166, wherein the third menuis a subsequent menu of Analysis Method and comprises one or more of afirst and a second subsection, wherein the first subsection comprisesone or more of an assay of the selected Assay Method and its algorithm,and the second subsection comprises available algorithms when analgorithm in the first subsection is selected.

Embodiment 170 is the method of embodiment 166, wherein the third menuis a subsequent menu of Protocol.

Embodiment 171 is the of embodiment 166, wherein the fourth menu is asubsequent menu of Confirm and comprises one or more of a firstsubsection and a second subsection, wherein the first subsectioncomprises one or more of a spot layout and an associated list of assaysin the selected Assay Method and the second subsection comprises one ormore of a unique Assay method name, a plate layout, and Confirm.

Embodiment 172 is the method of embodiment 163, wherein the secondportion comprises one or more of Recent and Available, and the inresponse to a selection of Available, the third menu is a subsequentmenu of Available and comprises one or more of a first, a second, and athird subsection, wherein the first subsection comprises one or more ofMSD Purchased, MSD Catalog, and user name, the second subsectioncomprises one or more of available types of assay method filtered by theselection in the first subsection, and the third section comprises oneor more of available assay methods filtered by the selections in thefirst and second subsections.

Embodiment 173 is the method of embodiment 172, wherein the secondsubsection comprises one or more assay method types selected fromBio-dosimetry, Custom, Custom Sandwich Immunoassay, PQ, Immunogenicity,Pharmacokinetic, PQ, N-PLEX, S-PLEX, U-PLEX, U-PLEX Development Pack,Utility, and V-PLEX.

Embodiment 174 is the method of embodiment 170, wherein the secondportion comprises a further subsequent menu of Protocol, wherein thefurther subsequent menu comprises one or more of Blocking, Capture,Detection, and Read Buffer.

Embodiment 175 is the method of embodiment 174, wherein the third menuis a subsequent menu of the Blocking, Capture, Detection, or Read Buffersubsequent menu and comprises one or more user-selectable oruser-nonselectable choices.

Embodiment 176 is the method of embodiment 175, wherein one or more ofthe choices in the third menu is user-selectable, and theuser-selectable choices are adapted to be editable.

Embodiment 177 is the method of embodiments 174 or 175, wherein thethird subsequent menu is a subsequent menu of the Blocking subsequentmenu and comprises one or more of Enable Blocking, Blocking Volume, andBlocking Incubation Duration.

Embodiment 178 is the method of embodiment 174 or 175, wherein the thirdsubsequent menu is a subsequent menu of the Capture subsequent menu andcomprises Sample Incubation Duration.

Embodiment 179 is the method of embodiment 174 or 175, wherein the thirdsubsequent menu is a subsequent menu of the Detection subsequent menuand comprises Detection Incubation Duration.

Embodiment 180 is the method of embodiment 174 or 175, wherein the thirdsubsequent menu is a subsequent menu of the Read Buffer subsequent menuand comprises Read Buffer Incubation Duration.

Embodiment 181 method of embodiment 171, wherein the unique Assay methodname is adapted to be edited to a second unique Assay method name.

Embodiment 182 is the method of any of embodiments 159-181, wherein inresponse to a selection of Review Assay Method, the second menucomprises one or more user-selectable choice selected from names ofrecent Assay Methods.

Embodiment 183 is the method of embodiment 64, wherein the secondportion comprises one or more of Recent and Available.

Embodiment 184 is the method of embodiment 64, wherein in response to aselection of a recent Assay Method, the second portion comprises one ormore of Assay Method and Definition, wherein the second menu is asubsequent menu of Definition comprises one or more of a first and asecond subsection.

Embodiment 185 is the method of embodiment 184, wherein the firstsubsection comprises one or more of an assay layout and one or moreassociated assays and the second subsection comprises one or more of anAssay Method name and a plate layout.

Embodiment 186 is the method of embodiment 64, wherein the second menuis a subsequent menu of Available and comprises one or more of a first,a second, and a third subsection.

Embodiment 187 is the method of embodiment 186, wherein the firstsubsection comprises one or more of MSD Catalog and one or moreusername, the second subsection comprises one or more of assay methodtype filtered by a selection in the first subsection, and the thirdsubsection comprises one or more available assay methods filtered by aselection in the first and second subsections.

Embodiment 188 is the method of embodiment 187, wherein in response to aselection of an available assay method, the subsequent menu comprisesone or more of Assay Method and Definition, wherein the subsequent menufor Definition comprises one or more of a first and a second subsection.

Embodiment 189 is the method of embodiment 64, wherein the first menu ofuser-selectable choices includes one or more of the following choices:designed experiment; and view Recent run.

Embodiment 190 is the method of any of embodiments 189, wherein inresponse to a selection of designed experiment, the second portion ofthe UI display is adapted to display one or more of the followingchoices: recent and available.

Embodiment 191 is the method of any of embodiments 189-190, wherein inresponse to a selection of designed experiment, the first portion of theUI display is adapted to display one or more experiments.

Embodiment 192 is the method of method of any of embodiments 189-191,wherein in response to a selection of available, the first portion ofthe UI display is adapted to display one or more a first-, second-, andthird-subsection, wherein the first sub-section includes a user name,the second sub-section includes a date, and the third sub-sectionincludes one or more experiment names.

Embodiment 193 is the method of any of embodiments 189-192, wherein inresponse to an experiment, the second portion includes one or more itemsselected from process, run, unload, and load components.

Embodiment 194 is the method of any of embodiments 189-193, whereinunload and load components are subsequent menus in response to aselection of the process item.

Embodiment 195 is the method of any of embodiments 189-194, wherein thefirst portion of the UI display is adapted to display one or more afirst- and second-subsection, wherein the first sub-section includes oneor more one or more instructions for loading one or more component of anexperiment and one or more choice to check all items, each with anassociated checkbox adapted to allow selection of that item.

Embodiment 196 is the method of any of embodiments 189-195, wherein thesecond-subsection includes a representation of the location for loadingeach component adapted to add a representation of and to highlight eachcomponent as an associated checkbox or the box for check all items ischecked.

Embodiment 197 is the method of method of any of embodiments 189-196,wherein in response to a selection of the check all items checkbox or aselection of all associated checkboxes, the second-subsection includes arepresentation of the location for loading each component, the secondportion of the UI display is adapted to output a Play Button.

Embodiment 198 is the method of any of embodiments 189-197, wherein inresponse to a selection of the Play Button, a run function is adapted tobe performed.

Embodiment 199 is the method of any of embodiments 64 or 124-156,wherein the first menu comprises one or more of Design Experiment andReview Experiment.

Embodiment 200 is the method of embodiment 199 wherein the second menucomprises one or more of New and From Existing Experiment in response aselection of Design.

Embodiment 201 is the method of any of embodiments 199-200 wherein thethird menu comprises one or more subsections in response to a selectionof New.

Embodiment 202 is the method of any of embodiments 199-201, wherein thefirst subsection of the third menu comprises a first unique experimentname field and an experiment type field.

Embodiment 203 is the method of any of embodiments 199-202, wherein theexperiment name field is adapted to allow manual entry of a secondunique name and the experiment type field is adapted to be edited whenclicked.

Embodiment 204 is the method of any of embodiments 199-203, wherein thesecond sub-section comprises Manual and Automation in response to a userclicking the experiment type.

Embodiment 205 is the method of any of embodiments 199-204, wherein thesecond portion includes one or more of Design Experiment, Setup, AssayMethod, Samples, and Confirm in response to a selection of a uniqueexperiment name and experiment type.

Embodiment 206 is the method of any of embodiments 199-205, wherein thesecond portion includes one or more of Design Experiment, Setup, AssayMethod, Samples, and Confirm.

Embodiment 207 is the method of any of embodiments 199-206 furthercomprising providing a fourth command for a fourth menu ofuser-selectable items to be displayed on the first portion of the UIdisplay in response to a user's selection from the third menu, whereinthe one or more of a past-selected and a past-unselected menu item ofthe hierarchical menu levels from the first, second, and third menu isadapted to be displayed on the second portion and concurrently viewedwith the first portion.

Embodiment 208 is the method of any of embodiments 199-207 wherein thesecond portion includes one or more of Recent and Available and both aresubsequent menus of Assay Method.

Embodiment 209 is the method of any of embodiments 199-208 wherein thefourth menu includes one or more Recent assay method.

Embodiment 210 is the method of any of embodiments 199-209 wherein thefirst portion comprises one or more of a first, a second, and a thirdsub-section of the fourth menu.

Embodiment 211 is the method of any of embodiments 199-210 wherein thefirst sub-section includes one or more of MSD Purchased, MSD Catalog,and usernames.

Embodiment 212 is the method of any of embodiments 199-211 wherein thesecond sub-section includes one or more of Assay method types, filteredby the highlighted item in the first sub-section.

Embodiment 213 is the method of any of embodiments 199-212 wherein thethird sub-section includes one or more available Assay Method filteredby the highlighted item in the first and second sub-sections.

Embodiment 214 is the method of any of embodiments 199-213 wherein thesecond portion further includes one or more of Manual and Import inresponse to a selection of an Assay Method, wherein Manual and Importare subsequent menus of Sample.

Embodiment 215 is the method of any of embodiments 199-214 wherein theManual choice is configured to allow entry of a number of samples.

Embodiment 216 is the method of any of embodiments 199-215 wherein theImport choice is configured to allow entry of a document file path.

Embodiment 217 is the method of any of embodiments 199-216 wherein inresponse to a selection of a number of samples or a document file path,the third menu is a subsequent menu of Confirm and includes one or moreof Experiment name, total sample number, plate layout, assay methodname, and Confirm.

Embodiment 218 is the method of any of embodiments 199-217 wherein inresponse to a selection of From Existing Experiment, the third menuincludes one or more of Recent and Available.

Embodiment 219 is the method of any of embodiments 199-218 wherein inresponse to a selection of Recent, the third menu includes a list ofrecent Experiments.

Embodiment 220 is the method of any of embodiments 199-219 wherein thethird menu comprises a first, a second, and a third sub-section, whereinthe first sub-section comprises one or more user names, the secondsub-section comprises one or more Experiment dates filtered byhighlighted user name, and the third sub-section comprises one or morenames of existing Experiments filtered by highlighted user name andselected Experiment date, in response to a selection of Available.

Embodiment 221 is the method of any of embodiments 199-220 wherein inresponse to a selection of a name of a Recent or Available Experiment,the second portion comprises one or more of Design Experiment, Setup,Assay Method, Samples, and Confirm.

Embodiment 222 is the method of embodiment 199, wherein in response to aselection of Review Experiment, the second menu comprises one or morenames of recent Experiments.

Embodiment 223 is the method of embodiment 222, the second portioncomprises Recent and Available and the third menu is a subsequent menuof Recent.

Embodiment 224 is the method of embodiments 222 or 223, wherein thesecond menu comprises one or more of a first, a second, and a thirdsubsection, wherein the first sub-section comprises one or more usernames, the second sub-section comprises one or more Experiment datesfiltered by highlighted user name, and the third sub-section comprisesone or more names of existing Experiments filtered by highlighted username and selected Experiment date, in response to a selection ofAvailable.

Embodiment 225 is the method of embodiments 222 to 224, wherein thesecond portion comprises one or more of Experiment, Plates, Samples,Calibrators, Controls, and Data Table in response to a user's selectionof a recent Experiment or Available Experiment.

Embodiment 226 is the method of embodiments 222 to 225 wherein the thirdmenu of user-selectable choices is a subsequent menu of Plates andcomprises one or more of Experiment name, total sample number, one ormore plate representation, and an assay method name, wherein the one ormore plate representation is adapted to be selected.

Embodiment 227 is the method of embodiments 222 to 226 furthercomprising providing a fourth command for a fourth menu ofuser-selectable items to be displayed on the first portion of the UIdisplay in response to a user's selection of one of the one or moreplate representation, wherein the one or more of a past-selected and apast-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels from thefirst, second, and third menu is adapted to be displayed on the secondportion and concurrently viewed with the first portion.

Embodiment 228 is the method of embodiments 222 to 227 wherein thesecond portion further comprises Heat Map and Data Table and the fourthmenu is a subsequent menu of Heat Map and comprises one or more of aspot layout, a list of assays, a plate layout, and a graph, wherein thespots of the spot layout and wells of the plate layout are adapted to behighlighted by a user, wherein Heat Map and Data Table are subsequentmenus of Plates.

Embodiment 229 is the method of embodiments 222 to 228 wherein inresponse to a highlighting of a spot, the graph populates with data forthe selected spot over the entire plate, or wherein in response to ahighlighting of a spot and a well, the graph populates with data for thehighlighted spot in the highlighted well.

Embodiment 230 is the method of embodiments 222 to 229 wherein inresponse to a selection of one of the one or more patent representation,the third menu is a Table of Data for the selected plate and comprisesone or more columns selected from Plate, Sample, Assay, Well, Spot,Dilution, Conc., Conc. Unit, Signal, Adj. Signal, Mean, Adj. SignalMean, CV, Calc. Conc., Calc. Conc. Mean, Calc. Conc. CV, % Recovery, %Recovery Mean.

Embodiment 231 is the method of embodiments 222 to 230 wherein the thirdmenu is a subsequent menu of Samples and comprises one or more graphsfor Sample data, and the second portion comprises one or more of Graphand Table.

Embodiment 232 is the method of embodiments 222 to 231 wherein the thirdmenu is a subsequent menu of Calibrators and comprises one or more graphfor Calibrator data.

Embodiment 233 is the method of embodiments 222 to 232, wherein thethird menu is a subsequent menu of Controls and comprises one or moregraph for Control data.

Embodiment 234 is the method of embodiments 222 to 233 wherein the thirdmenu is a subsequent menu of Data Table and comprises one or more tablesfor data for samples, calibrators (if any), and controls (if any).

Embodiment 235 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;

Embodiment 236 is the method of embodiment 234, wherein the first menuis adapted to be displayed on a second portion of the UI display andcomprises one or more of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselectedmenu item of the hierarchical menu levels and is adapted to beconcurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion, furtherwherein the second portion is adapted to display at least one menu itemfrom among one or more previously navigated menu levels and subsequentmenu levels to provide a visual representation of: (1) a user's previoustraversal of the menu hierarchy; and (2) future items that can besubsequently selected, further wherein the first portion is an activeportion of the UI display that is adapted to be consistently displayedwithin the same area of the UI display to optimize a user's focus whileinteracting with the UI display.

Embodiment 237 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, apermissions command, wherein the permissions command is adapted tomanage one or more of user's and team's levels of access, security, orcontrol, wherein the levels of access are adapted to be assigned basedon one or more of a role, user, team, account, instrument, equipment, ordevice; and wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on asecond portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portion isadapted to display at least one menu item from among one or morepreviously navigated menu levels and subsequent menu levels to provide avisual representation of: (1) a user's previous traversal of the menuhierarchy; and (2) future items that can be subsequently selected,further wherein the first portion includes between two to fivesub-sections of one or more user-selectable menu items, wherein thesemenu items are divided among these sub-sections and the sub-sections areadapted to be displayed to create an association among the menu itemsfrom each of the respective sub-sections.

Embodiment 238 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, anoutput in response to a received response, wherein the output is adaptedto be transmitted to a device communicatively connected to the processordirecting the device to perform a physical movement or undergo aphysical transformation, wherein the first menu is adapted to bedisplayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises one ormore of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the at least oneprocessor is adapted to receive benchmark inputs from one or more users,accounts, or teams, wherein an aggregation of the benchmark inputs isadapted to collaboratively solve one or more problems, eithersequentially or in parallel, further wherein each of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to be based on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) aproblem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) a device; (d) a physicallocation; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g) equipment, furtherwherein the at least one processor is adapted to notify the one or moreusers, accounts, or teams, of the results derived from one or more ofthe received benchmark inputs.

Embodiment 239 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; and providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayedon a second portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portion isadapted to display at least one menu item from one or more of previouslynavigated and subsequent menu levels, wherein the items among a singlemenu level are adapted to be displayed in a linear fashion and thepreviously navigated and subsequent menu levels are adapted to bedisplayed in a nested fashion, further wherein the first portioncomprises no more than a single menu of items at a given point in time,further wherein the first portion includes between two to fivesub-sections of one or more user-selectable items, wherein these menuitems are divided among these sub-sections and the sub-sections areadapted to be displayed to create an association among the items fromeach of the respective sub-sections.

Embodiment 240 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;providing, by the at least one processor, a dialog box adapted to bedisplayed on the foreground of the UI display to prompt a user foradditional information or notify the user of an error, wherein thebackground of the dialog box is further adapted to match the backgroundof the first and second portions of the UI display, further wherein oneor more of text, graphics, photos, and videos displayed in thebackground of the first and second portions of the UI display areadapted to displayed out of focus when the dialog box is being displayedon the foreground of the UI display; providing, by the at least oneprocessor, an output in response to a received response, wherein theoutput is adapted to be transmitted to a device communicativelyconnected to the processor directing the device to perform a physicalmovement or undergo a physical transformation; providing, by the atleast one processor, a permissions command, wherein the permissionscommand is adapted to manage one or more of user's and team's levels ofaccess, security, or control, wherein the levels of access are adaptedto be assigned based on one or more of a role, user, team, account,instrument, equipment, or device; providing, by the at least oneprocessor, a progress indicator adapted to be displayed on the UIdisplay, wherein the progress indicator comprises a series of flickeringpixels to indicate that the at least one processor is processing areceived response and providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu, wherein the advanced context menu is adapted todivided into a plurality of portions including one or more of thefollowing: a top portion comprising items related to the currentlyactive menu; a middle portion comprising items related to particularmodules available to a user; and a bottom portion comprising globalfunctions comprising one or more of login/logout functionality, usermanuals and help, EULA information, and privacy policy information,wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion ofthe UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selected menu itemand a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and isadapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion,further wherein the second portion is adapted to display at least onemenu item from among one or more previously navigated menu levels andsubsequent menu levels to provide a visual representation of: (1) auser's previous traversal of the menu hierarchy; and (2) future itemsthat can be subsequently selected, further wherein the first portion isan active portion of the UI display that is adapted to be consistentlydisplayed within the same area of the UI display to optimize a user'sfocus while interacting with the UI display, further wherein the secondportion further comprises an indicator bar, further wherein one or moreof the past-selected menu items are adapted to be visually aligned withthe indicator bar to designate which menu items were previously selectedthroughout a user's traversal of the menu hierarchy, further wherein thesecond portion further comprises an indicator bar comprising a statusindicator adapted to display one or more color-coded states, the statescomprising red to indicate an error state and blue to indicate anon-error state, further wherein the second portion is adapted todisplay at least one menu item from one or more of previously navigatedand subsequent menu levels, wherein the items among a single menu levelare adapted to be displayed in a linear fashion and the previouslynavigated and subsequent menu levels are adapted to be displayed in anested fashion, further wherein the first portion comprises no more thana single menu of items at a given point in time, further wherein thefirst portion includes between two to five sub-sections of one or moreuser-selectable items, wherein the single menu of items is divided amongthese sub-sections and the sub-sections are adapted to be displayed tocreate an association among the items from each of the respectivesub-sections, further wherein the first portion is adapted to displayvisually represented items to aid in a user's decision-making processes,wherein the visually represented item include one or more of: a video, apicture, a graph, a table, a chart, and a graphical representation of anobject, further wherein the at least one processor is adapted to receivebenchmark inputs from one or more users, accounts, or teams, wherein anaggregation of the benchmark inputs is adapted to collaboratively solveone or more problems, either sequentially or in parallel, furtherwherein each of the benchmark inputs is adapted to be based on one ormore of: (a) a module; (b) a problem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) adevice; (d) a physical location; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g)equipment, further wherein the at least one processor is adapted tonotify the one or more users, accounts, or teams, of the results derivedfrom one or more of the received benchmark inputs, further wherein theat least one processor is adapted to provide an interface between andenable communications among: (a) users, accounts, or teams; and (b)non-human machines, wherein the interface and communications allow theone or more users, accounts, teams, and non-human machines tocollaboratively solve one or more problems or sub-problems and notifyone or more of each of the results derived from their collaboration.

Embodiment 241 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion ofthe UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selected menu itemand a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and isadapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion,further wherein the second portion is adapted to display at least onemenu item from among one or more previously navigated menu levels andsubsequent menu levels to provide a visual representation of: (1) auser's previous traversal of the menu hierarchy; and (2) future itemsthat can be subsequently selected, further wherein the first portion isan active portion of the UI display that is adapted to be consistentlydisplayed within the same area of the UI display to optimize a user'sfocus while interacting with the UI display.

Embodiment 242 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; and providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayedon a second portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portion isadapted to display at least one menu item from among one or morepreviously navigated menu levels and subsequent menu levels to provide avisual representation of: (1) a user's previous traversal of the menuhierarchy; and (2) future items that can be subsequently selected,further wherein the second portion is adapted to display at least onemenu item from one or more of previously navigated and subsequent menulevels, wherein the items among a single menu level are adapted to bedisplayed in a linear fashion and the previously navigated andsubsequent menu levels are adapted to be displayed in a nested fashion,further wherein the first portion comprises no more than a single menuof items at a given point in time.

Embodiment 243 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, apermissions command, wherein the permissions command is adapted tomanage one or more of user's and team's levels of access, security, orcontrol, wherein the levels of access are adapted to be assigned basedon one or more of a role, user, team, account, instrument, equipment, ordevice; and wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on asecond portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portion isadapted to display at least one menu item from among one or morepreviously navigated menu levels and subsequent menu levels to provide avisual representation of: (1) a user's previous traversal of the menuhierarchy; and (2) future items that can be subsequently selected,further wherein the first portion includes between two to fivesub-sections of one or more user-selectable items, wherein the singlemenu of items is divided among these sub-sections and the sub-sectionsare adapted to be displayed to create an association among the itemsfrom each of the respective sub-sections.

Embodiment 244 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, anoutput in response to a received response, wherein the output is adaptedto be transmitted to a device communicatively connected to the processordirecting the device to perform a physical movement or undergo aphysical transformation, wherein the first menu is adapted to bedisplayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises one ormore of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portion isadapted to display at least one menu item from among one or morepreviously navigated menu levels and subsequent menu levels to provide avisual representation of: (1) a user's previous traversal of the menuhierarchy; and (2) future items that can be subsequently selected,further wherein the at least one processor is adapted to receivebenchmark inputs from one or more users, accounts, or teams, wherein anaggregation of the benchmark inputs is adapted to collaboratively solveone or more problems, either sequentially or in parallel, furtherwherein each of the benchmark inputs is adapted to be based on one ormore of: (a) a module; (b) a problem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) adevice; (d) a physical location; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g)equipment.

Embodiment 245 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;and providing, by the at least one processor, an advanced context menu,wherein the advanced context menu is adapted to divided into a pluralityof portions including one or more of the following: a top portioncomprising items related to the currently active menu; a middle portioncomprising items related to particular modules available to a user; anda bottom portion comprising global functions comprising one or more oflogin/logout functionality, user manuals and help, EULA information, andprivacy policy information, wherein the first menu is adapted to bedisplayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises one ormore of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the first portion isadapted to display visually represented items to aid in a user'sdecision-making processes, wherein the visually represented item includeone or more of: a video, a picture, a graph, a table, a chart, and agraphical representation of an object.

Embodiment 246 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;and providing, by the at least one processor, a dialog box adapted to bedisplayed on the foreground of the UI display to prompt a user foradditional information or notify the user of an error, wherein thebackground of the dialog box is further adapted to match the backgroundof the first and second portions of the UI display, further wherein oneor more of text, graphics, photos, and videos displayed in thebackground of the first and second portions of the UI display areadapted to displayed out of focus when the dialog box is being displayedon the foreground of the UI display, wherein the first menu is adaptedto be displayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises oneor more of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item ofthe hierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewedwith the second menu in first portion, further wherein the secondportion is adapted to display at least one menu item from one or more ofpreviously navigated and subsequent menu levels, wherein the items amonga single menu level are adapted to be displayed in a linear fashion andthe previously navigated and subsequent menu levels are adapted to bedisplayed in a nested fashion.

Embodiment 247 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu,wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion ofthe UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selected menu itemand a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and isadapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion.further wherein the first portion comprises no more than a single menuof items at a given point in time, further wherein the at least oneprocessor is adapted to provide an interface between and enablecommunications among: (a) users, accounts, or teams; and (b) non-humanmachines, wherein the interface and communications allow the one or moreusers, accounts, teams, and non-human machines to collaboratively solveone or more problems or sub-problems and notify one or more of each ofthe results derived from their collaboration.

Embodiment 248 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; and providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayedon a second portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the first portion isan active portion of the UI display that is adapted to be consistentlydisplayed within the same area of the UI display to optimize a user'sfocus while interacting with the UI display, further wherein the secondportion further comprises an indicator bar, further wherein one or moreof the past-selected menu items are adapted to be visually aligned withthe indicator bar to designate which menu items were previously selectedthroughout a user's traversal of the menu hierarchy, further wherein thefirst portion comprises no more than a single menu of items at a givenpoint in time.

Embodiment 249 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; and providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayedon a second portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the first portion isan active portion of the UI display that is adapted to be consistentlydisplayed within the same area of the UI display to optimize a user'sfocus while interacting with the UI display, further wherein the atleast one processor is adapted to receive benchmark inputs from one ormore users, accounts, or teams, wherein an aggregation of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to collaboratively solve one or more problems, eithersequentially or in parallel, further wherein each of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to be based on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) aproblem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) a device; (d) a physicallocation; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g) equipment, furtherwherein the at least one processor is adapted to provide an interfacebetween and enable communications among: (a) users, accounts, or teams;and (b) non-human machines, wherein the interface and communicationsallow the one or more users, accounts, teams, and non-human machines tocollaboratively solve one or more problems or sub-problems and notifyone or more of each of the results derived from their collaboration.

Embodiment 250 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; and providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayedon a second portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the first portion isan active portion of the UI display that is adapted to be consistentlydisplayed within the same area of the UI display to optimize a user'sfocus while interacting with the UI display. further wherein the atleast one processor is adapted to receive benchmark inputs from one ormore users, accounts, or teams, wherein an aggregation of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to collaboratively solve one or more problems, eithersequentially or in parallel, further wherein each of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to be based on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) aproblem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) a device; (d) a physicallocation; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g) equipment, furtherwherein the at least one processor is adapted to notify the one or moreusers, accounts, or teams, of the results derived from one or more ofthe received benchmark inputs.

Embodiment 251 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, anoutput in response to a received response, wherein the output is adaptedto be transmitted to a device communicatively connected to the processordirecting the device to perform a physical movement or undergo aphysical transformation, wherein the first menu is adapted to bedisplayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises one ormore of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the at least oneprocessor is adapted to receive benchmark inputs from one or more users,accounts, or teams, wherein an aggregation of the benchmark inputs isadapted to collaboratively solve one or more problems, eithersequentially or in parallel, further wherein each of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to be based on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) aproblem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) a device; (d) a physicallocation; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g) equipment, furtherwherein the at least one processor is adapted to notify the one or moreusers, accounts, or teams, of the results derived from one or more ofthe received benchmark inputs.

Embodiment 252 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; and providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayedon a second portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portion isadapted to display at least one menu item from one or more of previouslynavigated and subsequent menu levels, wherein the items among a singlemenu level are adapted to be displayed in a linear fashion and thepreviously navigated and subsequent menu levels are adapted to bedisplayed in a nested fashion, further wherein the first portioncomprises no more than a single menu of items at a given point in time,further wherein the first portion includes between two to fivesub-sections of one or more user-selectable items, wherein the singlemenu of items is divided among these sub-sections and the sub-sectionsare adapted to be displayed to create an association among the itemsfrom each of the respective sub-sections.

Embodiment 253 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anoutput in response to a received response, wherein the output is adaptedto be transmitted to a device communicatively connected to the processordirecting the device to perform a physical movement or undergo aphysical transformation; and providing, by the at least one processor, apermissions command, wherein the permissions command is adapted tomanage one or more of user's and team's levels of access, security, orcontrol, wherein the levels of access are adapted to be assigned basedon one or more of a role, user, team, account, instrument, equipment, ordevice, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a secondportion of the UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selectedmenu item and a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menulevels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu infirst portion, further wherein the second portion further comprises anindicator bar, further wherein one or more of the past-selected menuitems are adapted to be visually aligned with the indicator bar todesignate which menu items were previously selected throughout a user'straversal of the menu hierarchy.

Embodiment 254 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; and providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayedon a second portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the at least oneprocessor is adapted to receive benchmark inputs from one or more users,accounts, or teams, wherein an aggregation of the benchmark inputs isadapted to collaboratively solve one or more problems, eithersequentially or in parallel, further wherein each of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to be based on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) aproblem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) a device; (d) a physicallocation; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g) equipment, furtherwherein the at least one processor is adapted to notify the one or moreusers, accounts, or teams, of the results derived from one or more ofthe received benchmark inputs, further wherein the at least oneprocessor is adapted to provide an interface between and enablecommunications among: (a) users, accounts, or teams; and (b) non-humanmachines, wherein the interface and communications allow the one or moreusers, accounts, teams, and non-human machines to collaboratively solveone or more problems or sub-problems and notify one or more of each ofthe results derived from their collaboration.

Embodiment 255 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, aprogress indicator adapted to be displayed on the UI display, whereinthe progress indicator comprises a series of flickering pixels toindicate that the at least one processor is processing a receivedresponse, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a secondportion of the UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selectedmenu item and a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menulevels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu infirst portion. further wherein the second portion further comprises anindicator bar, further wherein one or more of the past-selected menuitems are adapted to be visually aligned with the indicator bar todesignate which menu items were previously selected throughout a user'straversal of the menu hierarchy, further wherein the second portionfurther comprises an indicator bar comprising a status indicator adaptedto display one or more color-coded states, the states comprising red toindicate an error state and blue to indicate a non-error state.

Embodiment 256 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu,wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion ofthe UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selected menu itemand a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and isadapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion,further wherein the second portion is adapted to display at least onemenu item from among one or more previously navigated menu levels andsubsequent menu levels to provide a visual representation of: (1) auser's previous traversal of the menu hierarchy; and (2) future itemsthat can be subsequently selected, further wherein the first portion isan active portion of the UI display that is adapted to be consistentlydisplayed within the same area of the UI display to optimize a user'sfocus while interacting with the UI display, further wherein the firstportion comprises no more than a single menu of items at a given pointin time.

Embodiment 257 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;and providing, by the at least one processor, a dialog box adapted to bedisplayed on the foreground of the UI display to prompt a user foradditional information or notify the user of an error, wherein thebackground of the dialog box is further adapted to match the backgroundof the first and second portions of the UI display, further wherein oneor more of text, graphics, photos, and videos displayed in thebackground of the first and second portions of the UI display areadapted to displayed out of focus when the dialog box is being displayedon the foreground of the UI display, wherein the first menu is adaptedto be displayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises oneor more of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item ofthe hierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewedwith the second menu in first portion, further wherein the secondportion is adapted to display at least one menu item from among one ormore previously navigated menu levels and subsequent menu levels toprovide a visual representation of: (1) a user's previous traversal ofthe menu hierarchy; and (2) future items that can be subsequentlyselected, further wherein the first portion is an active portion of theUI display that is adapted to be consistently displayed within the samearea of the UI display to optimize a user's focus while interacting withthe UI display.

Embodiment 258 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu,wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion ofthe UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selected menu itemand a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and isadapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion,further wherein the second portion is adapted to display at least onemenu item from among one or more previously navigated menu levels andsubsequent menu levels to provide a visual representation of: (1) auser's previous traversal of the menu hierarchy; and (2) future itemsthat can be subsequently selected, further wherein the first portion isan active portion of the UI display that is adapted to be consistentlydisplayed within the same area of the UI display to optimize a user'sfocus while interacting with the UI display, further wherein the atleast one processor is adapted to receive benchmark inputs from one ormore users, accounts, or teams, wherein an aggregation of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to collaboratively solve one or more problems, eithersequentially or in parallel, further wherein each of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to be based on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) aproblem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) a device; (d) a physicallocation; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g) equipment.

Embodiment 259 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, adialog box adapted to be displayed on the foreground of the UI displayto prompt a user for additional information or notify the user of anerror, wherein the background of the dialog box is further adapted tomatch the background of the first and second portions of the UI display,further wherein one or more of text, graphics, photos, and videosdisplayed in the background of the first and second portions of the UIdisplay are adapted to displayed out of focus when the dialog box isbeing displayed on the foreground of the UI display, wherein the firstmenu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion of the UI displayand comprises one or more of a past-selected menu item and apast-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and is adaptedto be concurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion, furtherwherein the second portion is adapted to display at least one menu itemfrom among one or more previously navigated menu levels and subsequentmenu levels to provide a visual representation of: (1) a user's previoustraversal of the menu hierarchy; and (2) future items that can besubsequently selected, further wherein the second portion is adapted todisplay at least one menu item from one or more of previously navigatedand subsequent menu levels, wherein the items among a single menu levelare adapted to be displayed in a linear fashion and the previouslynavigated and subsequent menu levels are adapted to be displayed in anested fashion, further wherein the first portion comprises no more thana single menu of items at a given point in time, further wherein thefirst portion includes between two to five sub-sections of one or moreuser-selectable items, wherein the single menu of items is divided amongthese sub-sections and the sub-sections are adapted to be displayed tocreate an association among the items from each of the respectivesub-sections.

Embodiment 260 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, apermissions command, wherein the permissions command is adapted tomanage one or more of user's and team's levels of access, security, orcontrol, wherein the levels of access are adapted to be assigned basedon one or more of a role, user, team, account, instrument, equipment, ordevice, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a secondportion of the UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selectedmenu item and a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menulevels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu infirst portion, further wherein the second portion is adapted to displayat least one menu item from among one or more previously navigated menulevels and subsequent menu levels to provide a visual representation of:(1) a user's previous traversal of the menu hierarchy; and (2) futureitems that can be subsequently selected, further wherein the firstportion comprises no more than a single menu of items at a given pointin time, further wherein the at least one processor is adapted toreceive benchmark inputs from one or more users, accounts, or teams,wherein an aggregation of the benchmark inputs is adapted tocollaboratively solve one or more problems, either sequentially or inparallel, further wherein each of the benchmark inputs is adapted to bebased on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) a problem or sub-problem tobe solved; (c) a device; (d) a physical location; (e) a tool; (f) aninstrument; or (g) equipment, further wherein the at least one processoris adapted to notify the one or more users, accounts, or teams, of theresults derived from one or more of the received benchmark inputs.

Embodiment 261 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anoutput in response to a received response, wherein the output is adaptedto be transmitted to a device communicatively connected to the processordirecting the device to perform a physical movement or undergo aphysical transformation; providing, by the at least one processor, apermissions command, wherein the permissions command is adapted tomanage one or more of user's and team's levels of access, security, orcontrol, wherein the levels of access are adapted to be assigned basedon one or more of a role, user, team, account, instrument, equipment, ordevice; and providing, by the at least one processor, an advancedcontext menu, wherein the advanced context menu is adapted to dividedinto a plurality of portions including one or more of the following: atop portion comprising items related to the currently active menu; amiddle portion comprising items related to particular modules availableto a user; and a bottom portion comprising global functions comprisingone or more of login/logout functionality, user manuals and help, EULAinformation, and privacy policy information, wherein the first menu isadapted to be displayed on a second portion of the UI display andcomprises one or more of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselectedmenu item of the hierarchical menu levels and is adapted to beconcurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion, furtherwherein the second portion is adapted to display at least one menu itemfrom among one or more previously navigated menu levels and subsequentmenu levels to provide a visual representation of: (1) a user's previoustraversal of the menu hierarchy; and (2) future items that can besubsequently selected, further wherein the at least one processor isadapted to receive benchmark inputs from one or more users, accounts, orteams, wherein an aggregation of the benchmark inputs is adapted tocollaboratively solve one or more problems, either sequentially or inparallel, further wherein each of the benchmark inputs is adapted to bebased on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) a problem or sub-problem tobe solved; (c) a device; (d) a physical location; (e) a tool; (f) aninstrument; or (g) equipment.

Embodiment 262 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;and providing, by the at least one processor, an advanced context menu,wherein the advanced context menu is adapted to divided into a pluralityof portions including one or more of the following: a top portioncomprising items related to the currently active menu; a middle portioncomprising items related to particular modules available to a user; anda bottom portion comprising global functions comprising one or more oflogin/logout functionality, user manuals and help, EULA information, andprivacy policy information, wherein the first menu is adapted to bedisplayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises one ormore of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portion isadapted to display at least one menu item from among one or morepreviously navigated menu levels and subsequent menu levels to provide avisual representation of: (1) a user's previous traversal of the menuhierarchy; and (2) future items that can be subsequently selected,further wherein the first portion is an active portion of the UI displaythat is adapted to be consistently displayed within the same area of theUI display to optimize a user's focus while interacting with the UIdisplay, further wherein the second portion is adapted to display atleast one menu item from one or more of previously navigated andsubsequent menu levels, wherein the items among a single menu level areadapted to be displayed in a linear fashion and the previously navigatedand subsequent menu levels are adapted to be displayed in a nestedfashion, further wherein the first portion is adapted to displayvisually represented items to aid in a user's decision-making processes,wherein the visually represented item include one or more of: a video, apicture, a graph, a table, a chart, and a graphical representation of anobject.

Embodiment 263 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;and providing, by the at least one processor, a dialog box adapted to bedisplayed on the foreground of the UI display to prompt a user foradditional information or notify the user of an error, wherein thebackground of the dialog box is further adapted to match the backgroundof the first and second portions of the UI display, further wherein oneor more of text, graphics, photos, and videos displayed in thebackground of the first and second portions of the UI display areadapted to displayed out of focus when the dialog box is being displayedon the foreground of the UI display, wherein the first menu is adaptedto be displayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises oneor more of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item ofthe hierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewedwith the second menu in first portion, further wherein the secondportion is adapted to display at least one menu item from among one ormore previously navigated menu levels and subsequent menu levels toprovide a visual representation of: (1) a user's previous traversal ofthe menu hierarchy; and (2) future items that can be subsequentlyselected, further wherein the second portion is adapted to display atleast one menu item from one or more of previously navigated andsubsequent menu levels, wherein the items among a single menu level areadapted to be displayed in a linear fashion and the previously navigatedand subsequent menu levels are adapted to be displayed in a nestedfashion, further wherein the at least one processor is adapted toreceive benchmark inputs from one or more users, accounts, or teams,wherein an aggregation of the benchmark inputs is adapted tocollaboratively solve one or more problems, either sequentially or inparallel, further wherein each of the benchmark inputs is adapted to bebased on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) a problem or sub-problem tobe solved; (c) a device; (d) a physical location; (e) a tool; (f) aninstrument; or (g) equipment, further wherein the at least one processoris adapted to notify the one or more users, accounts, or teams, of theresults derived from one or more of the received benchmark inputs.

Embodiment 264 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;and providing, by the at least one processor, a progress indicatoradapted to be displayed on the UI display, wherein the progressindicator comprises a series of flickering pixels to indicate that theat least one processor is processing a received response, wherein thefirst menu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion of the UIdisplay and comprises one or more of a past-selected menu item and apast-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and is adaptedto be concurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion, furtherwherein the second portion is adapted to display at least one menu itemfrom among one or more previously navigated menu levels and subsequentmenu levels to provide a visual representation of: (1) a user's previoustraversal of the menu hierarchy; and (2) future items that can besubsequently selected, further wherein the first portion comprises nomore than a single menu of items at a given point in time, furtherwherein the first portion is adapted to display visually representeditems to aid in a user's decision-making processes, wherein the visuallyrepresented item include one or more of: a video, a picture, a graph, atable, a chart, and a graphical representation of an object, furtherwherein the at least one processor is adapted to provide an interfacebetween and enable communications among: (a) users, accounts, or teams;and (b) non-human machines, wherein the interface and communicationsallow the one or more users, accounts, teams, and non-human machines tocollaboratively solve one or more problems or sub-problems and notifyone or more of each of the results derived from their collaboration.

Embodiment 265 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, apermissions command, wherein the permissions command is adapted tomanage one or more of user's and team's levels of access, security, orcontrol, wherein the levels of access are adapted to be assigned basedon one or more of a role, user, team, account, instrument, equipment, ordevice, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a secondportion of the UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selectedmenu item and a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menulevels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu infirst portion, further wherein the first portion is an active portion ofthe UI display that is adapted to be consistently displayed within thesame area of the UI display to optimize a user's focus while interactingwith the UI display, further wherein the second portion furthercomprises an indicator bar, further wherein one or more of thepast-selected menu items are adapted to be visually aligned with theindicator bar to designate which menu items were previously selectedthroughout a user's traversal of the menu hierarchy, further wherein thefirst portion comprises no more than a single menu of items at a givenpoint in time, further wherein the first portion includes between two tofive sub-sections of one or more user-selectable items, wherein thesingle menu of items is divided among these sub-sections and thesub-sections are adapted to be displayed to create an association amongthe items from each of the respective sub-sections, further wherein theat least one processor is adapted to receive benchmark inputs from oneor more users, accounts, or teams, wherein an aggregation of thebenchmark inputs is adapted to collaboratively solve one or moreproblems, either sequentially or in parallel, further wherein each ofthe benchmark inputs is adapted to be based on one or more of: (a) amodule; (b) a problem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) a device; (d) aphysical location; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g) equipment,further wherein the at least one processor is adapted to notify the oneor more users, accounts, or teams, of the results derived from one ormore of the received benchmark inputs.

Embodiment 266 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; and providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu,wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a second portion ofthe UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selected menu itemand a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menu levels and isadapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu in first portion,further wherein the first portion is an active portion of the UI displaythat is adapted to be consistently displayed within the same area of theUI display to optimize a user's focus while interacting with the UIdisplay, further wherein the first portion comprises no more than asingle menu of items at a given point in time, further wherein the firstportion includes between two to five sub-sections of one or moreuser-selectable items, wherein the single menu of items is divided amongthese sub-sections and the sub-sections are adapted to be displayed tocreate an association among the items from each of the respectivesub-sections, further wherein the first portion is adapted to displayvisually represented items to aid in a user's decision-making processes,wherein the visually represented item include one or more of: a video, apicture, a graph, a table, a chart, and a graphical representation of anobject, further wherein the at least one processor is adapted to receivebenchmark inputs from one or more users, accounts, or teams, wherein anaggregation of the benchmark inputs is adapted to collaboratively solveone or more problems, either sequentially or in parallel, furtherwherein each of the benchmark inputs is adapted to be based on one ormore of: (a) a module; (b) a problem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) adevice; (d) a physical location; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g)equipment, further wherein the at least one processor is adapted toprovide an interface between and enable communications among: (a) users,accounts, or teams; and (b) non-human machines, wherein the interfaceand communications allow the one or more users, accounts, teams, andnon-human machines to collaboratively solve one or more problems orsub-problems and notify one or more of each of the results derived fromtheir collaboration.

Embodiment 267 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anoutput in response to a received response, wherein the output is adaptedto be transmitted to a device communicatively connected to the processordirecting the device to perform a physical movement or undergo aphysical transformation, wherein the first menu is adapted to bedisplayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises one ormore of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portion isadapted to display at least one menu item from among one or morepreviously navigated menu levels and subsequent menu levels to provide avisual representation of: (1) a user's previous traversal of the menuhierarchy; and (2) future items that can be subsequently selected,further wherein the first portion is an active portion of the UI displaythat is adapted to be consistently displayed within the same area of theUI display to optimize a user's focus while interacting with the UIdisplay, further wherein the second portion further comprises anindicator bar comprising a status indicator adapted to display one ormore color-coded states, the states comprising red to indicate an errorstate and blue to indicate a non-error state, further wherein the secondportion is adapted to display at least one menu item from one or more ofpreviously navigated and subsequent menu levels, wherein the items amonga single menu level are adapted to be displayed in a linear fashion andthe previously navigated and subsequent menu levels are adapted to bedisplayed in a nested fashion, further wherein the at least oneprocessor is adapted to receive benchmark inputs from one or more users,accounts, or teams, wherein an aggregation of the benchmark inputs isadapted to collaboratively solve one or more problems, eithersequentially or in parallel, further wherein each of the benchmarkinputs is adapted to be based on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) aproblem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) a device; (d) a physicallocation; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g) equipment, furtherwherein the at least one processor is adapted to notify the one or moreusers, accounts, or teams, of the results derived from one or more ofthe received benchmark inputs.

Embodiment 268 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anoutput in response to a received response, wherein the output is adaptedto be transmitted to a device communicatively connected to the processordirecting the device to perform a physical movement or undergo aphysical transformation; providing, by the at least one processor, apermissions command, wherein the permissions command is adapted tomanage one or more of user's and team's levels of access, security, orcontrol, wherein the levels of access are adapted to be assigned basedon one or more of a role, user, team, account, instrument, equipment, ordevice; providing, by the at least one processor, a progress indicatoradapted to be displayed on the UI display, wherein the progressindicator comprises a series of flickering pixels to indicate that theat least one processor is processing a received response; and providing,by the at least one processor, an advanced context menu, wherein theadvanced context menu is adapted to divided into a plurality of portionsincluding one or more of the following: a top portion comprising itemsrelated to the currently active menu; a middle portion comprising itemsrelated to particular modules available to a user; and a bottom portioncomprising global functions comprising one or more of login/logoutfunctionality, user manuals and help, EULA information, and privacypolicy information, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed ona second portion of the UI display and comprises one or more of apast-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portion isadapted to display at least one menu item from among one or morepreviously navigated menu levels and subsequent menu levels to provide avisual representation of: (1) a user's previous traversal of the menuhierarchy; and (2) future items that can be subsequently selected,further wherein the at least one processor is adapted to receivebenchmark inputs from one or more users, accounts, or teams, wherein anaggregation of the benchmark inputs is adapted to collaboratively solveone or more problems, either sequentially or in parallel, furtherwherein each of the benchmark inputs is adapted to be based on one ormore of: (a) a module; (b) a problem or sub-problem to be solved; (c) adevice; (d) a physical location; (e) a tool; (f) an instrument; or (g)equipment, further wherein the at least one processor is adapted tonotify the one or more users, accounts, or teams, of the results derivedfrom one or more of the received benchmark inputs, further wherein theat least one processor is adapted to provide an interface between andenable communications among: (a) users, accounts, or teams; and (b)non-human machines, wherein the interface and communications allow theone or more users, accounts, teams, and non-human machines tocollaboratively solve one or more problems or sub-problems and notifyone or more of each of the results derived from their collaboration.

Embodiment 269 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anadvanced context menu adapted to be displayed in response to a selectionof an advanced selector, wherein the first portion is adapted to displaymore than 50% of the available menu items from the menu currentlydisplayed in the first portion based on or more of: (1) the mostfrequently used available menu items; (2) the importance to the outcomeor user; (3) choices customarily made by the user; or (4) choicescustomarily made in an industry, further wherein the advanced contextmenu is adapted to display the remaining available items from that menu;providing, by the at least one processor, a permissions command, whereinthe permissions command is adapted to manage one or more of user's andteam's levels of access, security, or control, wherein the levels ofaccess are adapted to be assigned based on one or more of a role, user,team, account, instrument, equipment, or device; and providing, by theat least one processor, a progress indicator adapted to be displayed onthe UI display, wherein the progress indicator comprises a series offlickering pixels to indicate that the at least one processor isprocessing a received response, wherein the first menu is adapted to bedisplayed on a second portion of the UI display and comprises one ormore of a past-selected menu item and a past-unselected menu item of thehierarchical menu levels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed withthe second menu in first portion, further wherein the second portionfurther comprises an indicator bar, further wherein one or more of thepast-selected menu items are adapted to be visually aligned with theindicator bar to designate which menu items were previously selectedthroughout a user's traversal of the menu hierarchy, further wherein thesecond portion is adapted to display at least one menu item from one ormore of previously navigated and subsequent menu levels, wherein theitems among a single menu level are adapted to be displayed in a linearfashion and the previously navigated and subsequent menu levels areadapted to be displayed in a nested fashion, further wherein the firstportion comprises no more than a single menu of items at a given pointin time, further wherein the first portion includes between two to fivesub-sections of one or more user-selectable items, wherein the singlemenu of items is divided among these sub-sections and the sub-sectionsare adapted to be displayed to create an association among the itemsfrom each of the respective sub-sections, further wherein the firstportion is adapted to display visually represented items to aid in auser's decision-making processes, wherein the visually represented iteminclude one or more of: a video, a picture, a graph, a table, a chart,and a graphical representation of an object.

Embodiment 270 is a method executed by at least one processor fornavigating a path of hierarchical menu levels adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, by atleast one processor, a first command for a first menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a first portion of a userinterface (UI) display; providing, by the at least one processor, asecond command for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the first portion of the UI display in responseto a user's selection; providing, by the at least one processor, anoutput in response to a received response, wherein the output is adaptedto be transmitted to a device communicatively connected to the processordirecting the device to perform a physical movement or undergo aphysical transformation; and providing, by the at least one processor, apermissions command, wherein the permissions command is adapted tomanage one or more of user's and team's levels of access, security, orcontrol, wherein the levels of access are adapted to be assigned basedon one or more of a role, user, team, account, instrument, equipment, ordevice, wherein the first menu is adapted to be displayed on a secondportion of the UI display and comprises one or more of a past-selectedmenu item and a past-unselected menu item of the hierarchical menulevels and is adapted to be concurrently viewed with the second menu infirst portion, further wherein the first portion is an active portion ofthe UI display that is adapted to be consistently displayed within thesame area of the UI display to optimize a user's focus while interactingwith the UI display, further wherein the second portion furthercomprises an indicator bar, further wherein one or more of thepast-selected menu items are adapted to be visually aligned with theindicator bar to designate which menu items were previously selectedthroughout a user's traversal of the menu hierarchy, further wherein thesecond portion further comprises an indicator bar comprising a statusindicator adapted to display one or more color-coded states, the statescomprising red to indicate an error state and blue to indicate anon-error state, further wherein the second portion is adapted todisplay at least one menu item from one or more of previously navigatedand subsequent menu levels, wherein the items among a single menu levelare adapted to be displayed in a linear fashion and the previouslynavigated and subsequent menu levels are adapted to be displayed in anested fashion, further wherein the at least one processor is adapted toreceive benchmark inputs from one or more users, accounts, or teams,wherein an aggregation of the benchmark inputs is adapted tocollaboratively solve one or more problems, either sequentially or inparallel, further wherein each of the benchmark inputs is adapted to bebased on one or more of: (a) a module; (b) a problem or sub-problem tobe solved; (c) a device; (d) a physical location; (e) a tool; (f) aninstrument; or (g) equipment, further wherein the at least one processoris adapted to notify the one or more users, accounts, or teams, of theresults derived from one or more of the received benchmark inputs.

The foregoing paragraphs [0099]-[00881] describe embodiments of a MUI.Below are described embodiments of Aggregated User Interfaces (AUIs).The AUI, as described below, employs some of the same features as theMUI, where specifically referenced below, and further includesadditional features and embodiments. The AUI, as described herein, maybe employed as a Mobile-Based Graphical User Interface and may beimplemented according to the description below.

Applicants have created systems, methods, and apparatuses foraggregating information adapted for output to a graphical userinterface. The methods can include providing a first menu command for afirst menu of one or more user-selectable menu items to be displayed ona menu portion of an Aggregated User Interface (AUI) display andproviding a content command for content to be displayed on the menuportion of the AUI display in response to the user's selection. Themethods can further aggregate information relating to the one or moreuser-selectable menu items from the first menu and adapt the one or moreuser-selectable menu items to be displayed on a content portion of theAUI display. By aggregating new information and displaying it on agraphical user interface, users can quickly and efficiently view andmanipulate content in a more organized fashion.

The system for aggregating information adapted for output to a graphicaluser interface (GUI) can include at least one processor, a computingdevice, and a computer readable storage medium configured to store acomputer application. In one embodiment, the computer readable storagemedium can include a non-transitory computer readable medium havingcomputer instructions stored thereon that, when executed by a processor,cause the processor to carry out a series of steps of a method foraggregating information adapted for output to a graphical user interface(GUI). In another embodiment, the at least one processor can beconfigured to execute instructions of the computer application forexecuting a series of steps of a method for aggregating informationadapted for output to a graphical user interface (GUI).

The method can include providing, by the at least one processor, a firstmenu command for a first menu of one or more user-selectable menu itemsto be displayed on a menu portion of an AUI display; providing, by theat least one processor, a content command for content to be displayed onthe menu portion of the AUI display in response to a user's selection;providing, by the at least one processor, a second menu command for asecond menu of one or more user-selectable menu items to be displayed onthe menu portion of the AUI display in response to the user's selection;and providing, by the at least one processor, a third menu command for athird menu of one or more user-selectable menu items to be displayed onthe menu portion of the AUI display in response to the user's selection.The order in which the one or more user-selectable menu items aredisplayed can be determined by user preferences and/or a user's previousinteractions with the one or more user-selectable menu items.

The information relating to one or more user-selectable menu items fromthe first, second, and third menus can be aggregated and adapted to bedisplayed on a content portion of the AUI display, concurrently with thefirst, second, and third menus. In one embodiment, the content portionof the AUI display can be concurrently displayed with no more than twoof the first, second, and third menus. Menu items from the first menucan include one or more categories of applications. Those categories caninclude one or more of electronic mail, social media, messaging,audio/visual conferencing, and shopping. This information can includeinformation or content not previously displayed on the AUI display. Thesecond menu of user-selectable menu items can include one or moreuser-selectable menu items at least one hierarchical menu level lowerthan the first menu, and it can be adapted to be displayed as beinglimited to a user's most frequently used applications (e.g., top 10% ofapplications used by that particular user) within a particular category.In one example, the aggregated information can include only content thatthe user has not previously viewed. In other examples, the aggregatedinformation can be arranged in reverse chronological order or byapplication type.

Further, each of the first and second menus can be adapted to bedisplayed in a horizontal orientation, and the first and second menuscan be adapted to be displayed in a nested fashion with respect to oneother. The content can be adapted to be displayed in the content portionin a vertical orientation, for example, a graphical rotating wheel. Thecontent portion of the AUI display can be adapted to display one or morea first subsection that can include a name of an individual or a groupand second subsection that can include content associated with the nameof that individual or group. Moreover, in one embodiment, the first menuand the content can be adapted to be displayed on a background includingpixels, wherein at least 75% of the pixels are black.

The content portion can be adapted to display one or more of currentcontent and additional content, which can be adapted to be emphasizedand deemphasized, respectively, on the AUI display. The content caninclude individual's name, a group's name, a date, a time, a subject, amessage, a photo, a video, an attachment, or a link to other content.The content portion can further include an interactive content portionadapted to receive text- or graphical-based inputs. The menu portion canbe adapted to be disposed below the content portion on the AUI display.The menu portion can further include the first menu, a scroll zone, andone or more of a second menu of one or more user-selectable menu itemsand third menu of one or more user-selectable menu items. In oneembodiment, two or more of the first, second, and third menus can beadapted to be displayed as a series of concentric wheels, and the scrollzone can be adapted rotate the one or more of the first, second, andthird menus.

Further features as well as the structure and operation of variousembodiments are described in detail below with reference to theaccompanying drawings.

Applicants have created systems, methods, and apparatuses foraggregating information adapted for output to a graphical userinterface. The methods can include providing a first menu command for afirst menu of one or more user-selectable menu items to be displayed ona menu portion of an (AUI) display and providing a content command forcontent to be displayed on the menu portion of the AUI display inresponse to the user's selection. The methods can further aggregateinformation relating to the one or more user-selectable menu items fromthe first menu and adapt the one or more user-selectable menu items tobe displayed on a content portion of the AUI display. By aggregating newinformation and displaying it on a graphical user interface, users canquickly and efficiently view and manipulate content in a more organizedfashion.

FIG. 58 illustrates an embodiment of a mobile device for aggregatinginformation on a mobile-based user interface display depicted in aportrait orientation. Mobile device 101-01 can include an AUI display101-02, which can further be divided, for example (as shown in FIG. 58)into a menu portion 101-03 and a content portion 101-04. The AUI display101-02 can further include an indicator bar 101-05 and status indicator101-06, as described in greater detail below.

Mobile device 101-01 can include one or more mobile-based devices, suchas, for example, mobile phones (e.g., iPhone, Galaxy), tablets (e.g.,iPad), wearable technology (such as smart watches (e.g., Apple Watch),smart jewelry, fitness trackers, smart clothing, and head-mounteddisplays), or other mobile-based computing devices, such as laptops orother portable computing devices. In other embodiments, additionalcomputing devices can be employed in addition to mobile device 101-01 orin place of mobile device 101-01. For example, one or morenon-mobile-based computing devices can be provided in lieu of mobiledevice 101-01. Non-mobile-based computing devices can include, forexample, desktop computers (e.g., with separate peripherals such asmonitors, keyboards, mice, etc.) or other non-portable computingdevices. Mobile device 101-01 can further include one or more of theother examples described in greater detail above in conjunction withother embodiments described herein, for example, as described withreference to paragraphs [00182] and [00415]-[00422].

The AUI 101-02, as discussed herein, may incorporate any or all of thefeatures and components of the MUI, as described with reference toparagraphs [0098]-[00870]. Embodiments of the AUI, however, are distinctfrom embodiments of the MUI and may differ in respects, as described ingreater detail below. AUI display 101-02 can include graphical userinterfaces (GUIs), text-based user interface systems, virtual,augmented, or mixed reality (VAMR) interface systems, projection-basedsystems, gesture controlled systems, and/or any other type of visualuser interfaces, for example, as described with reference to paragraph[00111]. In certain embodiments, AUI display 101-02 can include one ormore of the examples discussed above in greater detail in conjunctionwith the methodical user interface (MUI) display 206, for example, asdescribed with reference to paragraphs [00111]-[00112]. In oneembodiment, the AUI display can be utilized to customize a user'sinterface, experience, and interaction with contents, such as in themanner that an Android Launcher allows users to customize theirexperiences. In further embodiments, users can provide inputs in variousmanners, including by manipulating a touchscreen display. For example,the action of rotating, sliding, tapping, pressing, etc. one or more ofthe user's fingers or thumbs can be registered as inputs to the AUIdisplay 101-02, which can be used to cause commands (e.g., from one ormore hardware processors) to issue for allowing information to beaggregated, organized, and/or displayed to users. Users can furthermanually manipulate the AUI display 101-02 to provide these inputs, forexample by using two or more fingers, using the third dimension of a 3Ddisplay, using haptic inputs, etc. For additional embodiments, an inputcan include a user rotating the mobile device 101-01 from the portraitorientation to the landscape orientation and vice-a-versa. In otherembodiments, inputs to the AUI display can be responsive to a motion ofa finger on a touch screen or an input from a pointing device or anotherinput device or in any other manner described in greater detail above inconjunction with other embodiments described herein, for example, asdescribed with reference to paragraph [00111].

As described above, AUI display 101-02 can be divided into two or moreportions. For the embodiment depicted in this figure, AUI display 101-02is divided into a menu portion 101-03, which can be located at a topportion of the AUI display 101-02, and a content portion 101-04, whichcan be located at a bottom portion of the AUI display 101-02. In otherembodiments, the content portion 101-04 can be located above the menuportion 101-03. In still further embodiments, these portions can belocated on other portions of the AUI display 101-02 as well or combinedinto a single portion.

Standard Content View—Menu Portion

FIG. 59A illustrates an additional embodiment of the mobile deviceillustrated in FIG. 58 depicting a standard content view. FIG. 59Billustrates a detailed view of the menu portion illustrated in FIG. 59A.These figures will be described in conjunction with one another. In thisembodiment, menu portion 101-03 and content portion 101-04 have beenpopulated with menus and content, respectively. Menu portion 101-03 isadapted to display one or more menus (e.g., one, two, three, or moremenus) of user-selectable menu items. In one example (for example, asdepicted in this figure), menu portion 101-03 can include a first menu102-01, second menu 102-02, and a third menu 102-03. In this example,these menus can be organized in a hierarchical fashion such that only aportion of the entire menus' items can be displayed on the AUI display101-02 at any given point in time (although in some embodiments, all theitems from one or more menus can be displayed contemporaneously). In oneexample, these menus can be organized as hierarchical menu trees, forexample, as described with reference to paragraph [00124]. In thisexample, each level of the menu tree includes multiple menus leading toother menus. Accordingly, a first level of the menu tree includes aplurality of first menus, a second level of the menu tree includes aplurality of second menus, a third level of the menu tree includes aplurality of third menus, and so on. In another example, the second menu102-02 of one or more user-selectable menu items can include one or moreuser-selectable menu items at least one hierarchical menu level lowerthan the first menu 102-01. In other examples, these menus can beorganized in a manner as described in greater detail above inconjunction with other embodiments described herein, for example, asdescribed with reference to paragraphs [0016], [00201], [00303],[00393], and [00464]. Although the embodiment depicted in FIGS. 59A and59B illustrates a total of three menus, a greater or fewer menu levelsare contemplated as well.

The user-selectable items available in each of these menus can includevarious selections made available to the user. For example, the firstmenu 102-01 of user-selectable menu items can include one or morecategories of mobile-device-based applications, and the second menu102-02 of user-selectable menu items can include one or moremobile-device-based applications within a particular category of thefirst menu, and the third menu 102-03 of user-selectable menu items caninclude functions that relate to the one or more mobile-device-basedapplications of the second menu 102-02. In certain embodiments, theapplications can include non-mobile-based applications either inaddition to, or in lieu of, the mobile-based applications describedthroughout. These categories, applications, and functions are describedin greater detail below.

In certain embodiments, one or more of the menus displayed within themenu portion 101-03 each of the first 102-01 and second menus 102-02 areadapted to be displayed in a horizontal orientation, and the first102-01 and second menus 102-02 can be adapted to be displayed in anested fashion with respect to each other. In this example, each of themenu items available from each menu level can be displayed in ahorizontal fashion, such that a user can scroll left to right (or rightto left) to view the various items with the menu. This horizontalorientation is described in greater detail above in conjunction withother embodiments described herein, for example, with reference toparagraphs [00113], [00135], [00224], and [00226]. Further, one or moreof the menu levels (e.g., first, second, etc.) can be displayed in anested fashion relative to one another. In these embodiments, thevarious menu levels can be vertically stacked so that a user can viewtwo or more of the menu levels concurrently. For example, as depicted inthis figure, first 102-01, second 102-02, and third menus 102-03 aredepicted in a nested fashion in which all three menu levels areconcurrently displayed in the menu portion 101-03. Other examples ofnested menu levels are described in greater detail above in conjunctionwith other embodiments described herein, for example, with reference toparagraphs [00104] and [00134].

For additional embodiments, each of the menus (e.g., first 102-01 andsecond 102-02 menus) can be adapted to display menu items according tofrequency of use. Selection via frequency of use may permit the menus toonly include the most frequently used items from among each of thosemenu levels. Frequency of use may be determined, for example, based on aparticular user's use patterns. In certain embodiments, use may bedetermined based on how often or frequently the user accesses one ormore particular applications (e.g., how often users open one or moreapplications each time they access and/or unlock their mobile devices,measured, for example, over a given time period, such as the number oftimes accessed per hour, per eight-hour period, per day, per week,etc.). The menu can display a certain number of most frequently accesseditems, such as, for example, the three, five, seven, or ten mostfrequently accessed items in the given time period). In otherembodiments, use may be determined based on the total or absolute amountof time a user spends utilizing one or more applications over aparticular period of time (e.g., hours, days, weeks, etc.), or it may bedetermined based on the relative amount of time a user spends utilizingone or more applications over a particular period of time. In the latterexample, the relative amount of time can be based on how much time usersaccess applications relative to all other applications available on themobile device, relative to a particular subset of applications availableon the mobile device, or relative to other functions of the mobiledevice (e.g., relative to how frequently the user utilizes the mobiledevice to place and receive phone calls, etc.).

For example, the second menu 102-02 of user-selectable menu itemsadapted to be displayed can be limited to the top 10% of a user's mostfrequently used mobile-device-based applications, although otherfrequencies of use are contemplated as well (e.g., 20%, 30%, 40%, 50%,60%, 70%, 80%, 90%, 100%, etc.). Although these particular examples areprovided in ten-percent increments, these percentages are not solimited, as any percentage (between 0 and 100) of frequency of use arecontemplated as well. In other embodiments, the menu items available tobe displayed within a given menu level can be determined based onwhether or not each of the menu items within a given menu level meets orexceeds a particular threshold. For example, a threshold may vary basedon the menu level (e.g., lower levels may have lower frequencyrequirements for display, as there are often a greater number of optionsat lower levels, they may be selected less often), for example, asdescribed with reference to paragraph [00297]. Those menu items that donot meet the threshold (e.g., outside the top 10% case described above)can be made unavailable to the user in the menu portion 101-03, but canbe made available through an advanced feature, such as through anadvanced menu or other manner for access of additional items forselection. In this regard, the user's choices can be limited to thosethat are most frequently used throughout the AUI, permittingsignificantly faster navigation. In addition to frequency of use by aparticular user, frequency of use can be based on one or more additionalfactors as well, for example an aggregation of users, or other examplesof frequency of use as described in greater detail above in conjunctionwith other embodiments described herein, for example, with reference toparagraphs [00268], [00272], and [00274]-[00288]. Moreover, which menuitems for a given menu level are displayed can be determined by otherfactors, such as the importance of the item to one or more users, e.g.,messages marked as urgent, items customarily chosen by one or moreusers, items customized by one or more groups, or any other manner inwhich menu items can be displayed as available menu items as describedin greater detail above in conjunction with other embodiments describedherein, for example, as described with reference to paragraph [00845].The order in which the items are presented within a given menu level cansimilarly be based on one or more of the factors described above. Forexample, the order in which the items are made available for one or moremenu levels can be determined based on user preference, previous userinteractions, category of application, type of application, type offunction performed within a particular application, etc., such that themenus can be provided to maximize the efficiency to the user (e.g., byproviding the most relevant options first, without having the user toscroll through various options of less importance before arriving at theones deemed most important). This can be done dynamically such that incertain embodiments, the order of the same menu options for the sameuser could change over time depending on one or more of the users'previous interactions. For this dynamic-type ordering process, users'preferences and/or previous selections can be collected and analyzed todetermine and predict which options would likely be most relevant for agiven user at some point in the future. The predictive-type displayingcan be used to determine not only the order of menu items and/or contentto display to the user, but also which menu items, what content, howmuch of it (e.g., based on type of content, the sender of the content,etc.) that particular user would likely want displayed based on thatuser's previous preferences and interactions with the AUI. Thus,according to this feature, the AUI can use one or more of a user'spreferences and/or previous interactions (or two or more users'preferences and/or interactions individually or in the aggregate) withthe AUI to predict how and in what manner to best display menu itemsand/or content to the users. This can be accomplished throughpredicative logic and/or artificial intelligence to learn from and adaptto a user's behavior.

Add App Feature

In addition to the categories and applications made available to theuser within these menus, in certain embodiments, users can addadditional categories, applications, functions, etc. to one or more ofthese menus. Using applications as an example, the menu (here, thesecond menu 102-02 for this example) can include an item that, whenselected, allows the user to automatically or manually add a newapplication (e.g., “Add App”). For additional embodiments, this item canbe located at the end (or other portion) of the relevant menu (forexample, by scrolling all the way to the right (or left) of ahorizontally orientated menu level or, in other examples, can be addedthrough an advanced menu option. Using the Add App feature describedabove, the user could select the “Add App” item, which in turn couldpresent to the user a list, grid, or other graphical or text-basedrepresentation of all available applications from which the user can add(“Select” function). In other examples, the users can manually searchfor and/or select an application for which they wish to add. After theusers have selected the application they wish to add (either byselecting it from a pre-populated list or by manually searching for it),they can be prompted with fields for which to enter their credentials,such as username and password (“Access” function). These credentials,e.g., usernames, passwords, email addresses, etc., can be stored in amemory or other storage device so that users are not required to submittheir access credentials every time they utilize a particularapplication. Moreover, users' credentials can be extracted directly fromthe third-party applications and auto-populated such that the user doesnot need to enter their credentials again if they have already enteredthem for that particular application. Once added, the application canbecome part of the menu, presented as a pre-populated item for the userto select within that menu. For other embodiments, the Select and Accessfunctions can be displayed as menu items (for example, within a menulevel one hierarchical level lower than the one for which the user istrying to add to application, category, etc., and the newly added item(e.g., application) can be displayed in the menu portion 101-03 aseither text or an icon, as described in greater detail below.

Standard Content View—Content Portion

As further illustrated in this figure, content portion 101-04 caninclude current content 102-04 (also referred to as active content inthe sense that it can be disposed on an active portion of a display),and additional content 102-05 (also referred to as non-active content inthe sense that it can be disposed on a non-active portion of a display),both of which can include information relating to one or moreuser-selectable menu items from the various menus described above. Thecurrent content 102-04 and the additional content 102-05 can representtwo content items from a larger selection or set of content items. Auser may scroll or otherwise navigate through the content to cause thedisplay of the further content items from among the larger selection ofitems, as described below. Although the additional content 102-05depicted in this figure illustrates a single, discrete set ofinformation (e.g., individual or group, date, time), in otherembodiments, the additional content 102-05 can include two or more setsof information. Content for display in the current content 102-04 and/orthe additional content 102-05 is not limited to text-based content (suchas an individual's name, group's name, date, time, subject, message,etc.), but may include other content as well, such as one or more ofphotos, videos, attachments, and links to other content. The content caninclude the date and/or time content was received, transmitted, and/orcreated, which can be presented and/or displayed to the user in variousways. In one example, the time can be displayed only if the content wasreceived, transmitted, and/or created that day. In other examples, thedate can be only displayed if the content was received, transmitted,and/or created the previous day (or more than one previous days fromwhen the content was received, transmitted, and/or created). In certainembodiments, the date and/or time can be displayed in smaller font thanother aspects of the content (although it can be displayed inequal-sized or larger font as well).

In certain examples, the current content 102-04 (active content) andadditional content 102-05 (non-active content) can be adapted to bedisplayed in a vertical orientation, such as, for example, a graphicalrotating wheel or sliding list (e.g., by using a slider as describedabove, for example, with reference to paragraph [00167]). In thisexample, this content is arranged as a menu of user-selectable items,and a user can scroll through this content (e.g., by manipulating atouchscreen, such as by swiping the touchscreen with one or more thumbsor fingers or any other input manner as described above, for example, asdescribed with reference to paragraph [001165]) to view content that isnot currently displayed on the AUI display 101-02 (FIG. 58) or rotatenon-active content until it becomes active content as described ingreater detail below. In the graphical wheel example, the content madeavailable in the content portion 101-04 can include a menu of choicesthat may be displayed in a graphical wheel that rotates the choices in adirection, for example, horizontal or vertical (for example, left andright, up and down) or another direction, for example, as described withreference to paragraph [00135]. In other examples, this content can bearranged as a graphical slider, horizontally, or in accordance with anyof the other examples of arranging a menu of items as described ingreater detail above in conjunction with other embodiments describedherein, for example, with reference to paragraphs [00120], [00121],[00168], [00201], [00303], [00393], and [00464]. In certain embodiments,certain aspects of the content can be accessed in a horizontallyorientated menu of items, even if the content and current content 102-04and additional content 102-05 are arranged in one or more verticallyorientated menus. One example of these embodiments could include contentthat includes multiple photos, videos, attachments, etc. that areassociated with particular content (such as an email correspondence).For additional embodiments, one or more advertisements (e.g.,advertising content, such as text-based advertising, video, etc.) may bedisplayed to the user, for example, within the content portion 101-04.In one example, the advertisements may be associated with the content auser is currently viewing (or can be unrelated to the content). Asdescribed above regarding the horizontally orientated menu of items(e.g., multiple photos, videos, attachments, etc. are associated withparticular content), these advertisements can similarly be arranged suchthat users can scroll through (and/or select) various advertisements bymanipulating the display.

Similar factors that determine which particular elements are displayedwithin a given menu level (and/or the order in which they are presented)can apply to the content displayed in the content portion 101-04 aswell. For example, the information or content displayed and/or the orderin which it is presented can be based on user, use, importance, or itcan be established through customization, as described in greater detailabove in conjunction the presentation of menu items within the menuportion 101-03. In other embodiments, the order of the content can bebased on the most recent content, particular users, particular groups,and/or other priorities set by default and/or customized by one or moreusers. In other embodiments, the order of the content can be determineddynamically based on previous user access and interaction with thecontent. For example, an Artificial Intelligence (AI) engine (not shown)can be employed to analyze the content that users access, view, and/orinteract with and provide related content based on this information(e.g., associating related content through hashtags or other keywordcategorization). In this regard, the content presented to users can bechanged quickly and dynamically based on a particular user's interactionwith it. For example, if a user primarily responds to email, a higherpercentage of email can be filtered into the user's aggregated content(and/or be presented to the user earlier in the order in which thecontent is organized and displayed). In other examples, the priority,amount, and order of the content can be based on the sender of thecontent (e.g., someone with whom the user frequently interacts withacross one or more social media platforms, etc.).

The menu items and/or content can be navigated and/or selected throughone or more inputs. In certain embodiments, those inputs can include oneor more of touch-based inputs, voice-based inputs, and/ormechanical-based inputs such as, for example, scrolling and/or pushing aphysical button or switch. These inputs can be applied to navigationfunctions (e.g., scrolling through menu items and/or content), selectionfunctions (e.g., choosing a particular menu item and/or content), andinquiry functions (e.g., responding to an inquiry, such as, for example,a confirmation or other prompt requiring users to provide a yes/noresponse to a question, to confirm a previous action, etc.).

In certain touch-based inputs, users can scroll and/or select menu itemsand/or content through manipulation of a touch-screen display, asdescribed in greater detail above. In certain voice-based embodiments,users can navigate available menu items and/or content and select menuitems and/or content through voice-based inputs. For example, users canvocally request a specific menu item or content to access and/or view.In another example, users can vocally request the manner in which totraverse one or more menu items and/or menu levels (e.g., request thatthe available menu items scroll to the left, request that the additionalcontent be made available, etc.). In certain mechanical-basedembodiments, users can navigate available menu items and/or content andselect menu items and/or content through the manipulation of a wheel,button, or other mechanical feature. For example, users could rotate aphysical wheel to traverse one or more menu items and/or menu levels. Inother examples, the mechanical-based input can be embodied as a buttonthat, when depressed, allows for the selection of a menu item and/orcontent. In certain embodiments, these individual elements (e.g., wheeland button) can be embodied as single elements (e.g., similar to a watchcrown). In other examples, these elements can be separate features suchthat the scrolling and/or navigation of menu items and/or content isperformed by a separate feature than the feature used to select thesame. In other embodiments, any combination of these inputs can beemployed to navigate and/or select menu items and/or content.

Various Aesthetics

In certain embodiments, the current content 102-04 can occupy a largerarea of the content portion 101-04 as compared to the additional content102-05, and in other embodiments, the areas can be the same, or theadditional content 102-05 can occupy a larger area of the contentportion 101-04 as compared to the current content 102-05. For additionalembodiments, one or more of the current content 102-04 and theadditional content 102-05 can include an ellipse (or other symbol, icon,or text) to designate that additional content is available. In oneexample, this additional content can be viewed, for example, by a userselecting the ellipse, which could result in displaying at least some ofthe additional content not previously displayed. An example of this isillustrated for example, in FIG. 60, as described in greater detailbelow. In some embodiments, display of the additional content 102-05 caninclude less information as compared to the current content 102-04,e.g., only a single line, although the amount of content containedwithin the additional content 102-05 is not so limited. Additionalembodiments contemplate an auto-preview feature for one or more of thecurrent content 102-04 and the additional content 102-05, allowing auser to preview at least a portion of the content before viewing theentire content (e.g., allowing a user to view a larger excerpt of anemail or other item than is made available to the user when displayed ascurrent content 102-04 or additional content 102-05). This auto-previewfeature can be initiated, for example, by a user selecting the currentcontent 102-04 in accordance with one or more of the user input mannersdescribed above (e.g., tapping, pressing, etc.).

In certain embodiments, the current content 102-04 can include thecontent or information that a user has currently highlighted, and theadditional content 102-05 can include additional content or informationavailable the user, but that is not currently highlighted. In theexample depicted in FIGS. 59A and 59B, as a user scrolls up, theoriginal current content 102-04 becomes additional content 102-05 (e.g.,relocated in the void above the current content 102-04 depicted in thisfigure), and the original additional content 102-05 becomes the currentcontent 102-04 (e.g., relocated to where the original current content102-04 was previously located). In one example, the relocated originalcurrent content 102-04 may still be displayed in the content portion101-04. In other examples, the relocated original current content 102-04may no longer be displayed. For additional embodiments, the additionalcontent 102-05 can include a sub-set of the content displayed as thecurrent content 102-04. In other embodiments, the content displayed foreach can be identical, mutually exclusive, or contain at least somecommon content or information.

In one embodiment, the current content 102-04 can be displayed in anemphasized manner relative to the additional content 102-05, and theadditional content 102-05 can be displayed in a deemphasized mannerrelative to the current content 102-04. This content can be emphasized(or made more prominent) by bolding, italicizing, or highlighting usinga different color than the background, or underlining, or in othermanners of emphasizing items as described above in conjunction with thedecision-making zone, described in greater detail above in conjunctionwith other embodiments described herein, for example, as described withreference to paragraphs [00114], [00205], [00206], [00214], [00215], and[00218]. Similarly, content can be deemphasized (or made more lessprominent) by making the content smaller, fading it with respect to theother menu items, or in other manners of deemphasizing items asdescribed above in conjunction with items outside the decision-makingzone, described in greater detail above in conjunction with otherembodiments described herein, for example, as described with referenceto paragraphs [00114], [00205], [00206], [00214], [00215], and [00218].

Turning to the menus, one or more of the items comprising the first menu102-01, second menu 102-02, and third menu 102-03 (and so on) can beemphasized and/or deemphasized in a similar manner as described abovewith regard to the current content 102-04 and additional content 102-05(e.g., making font larger/smaller, bolding/fading, etc.). For example,in the embodiment depicted in this figure, the “Email,” “Blend,” and“Reply,” items are emphasized, and the “Message,” “Outlook,” and “ReplyAll,” items are deemphasized. This example depicts a user's selection ofthe three former items, which is further illustrated by the verticalalignment of these selections with the status indicator 101-06.Moreover, in certain embodiments, one or more of the first 102-01,second, 102-02, and third 102-03 menus and associated content areadapted to be displayed in a manner that provides a high contrast on abackground of the AUI display 101-02 (FIG. 58). In various examples, oneor more of the menu items within a particular menu level can be depictedas text, icons, graphics, etc. For example, each of the availableapplications within a menu can be represented by the icons users wouldotherwise select to open and use that native application within theirmobile devices. In one example, the background can include pixels, whereat least 75% of the pixels are monochromatic, (e.g., black), althoughother percentages higher or lower are contemplated as well. Foradditional embodiments, the various menus are displayed on a background.In one embodiment, the menus are superimposed over the background. Thebackground may consist of one or more colors. In an embodiment, at leasta preset percentage of the background pixels may be monochromatic. Forexample, at least a preset percentage of the background pixels may bemonochromic. For instance, 75% of the background may be black, white,gray, etc. The specific percentage has been described by way of exampleand other percentages may be used. For other embodiments, displaycommands and relocation commands may specify the background, includingthe preset percentage and color, e.g., black, white, gray, etc. Incertain embodiments, the background may also include areas of the menusother than text (e.g., menu items). In one embodiment, the text of themenus is displayed in a color to contrast or emphasize the text with thebackground. For example, when a black background is used, white oryellow may be used for the color of the text, although other colors maybe used as well. In still other embodiments, the backgrounds and/or textmay be comprised of more than one color, for example, as described withreference to paragraphs [00235]-[00237].

In certain embodiments (e.g., as shown in FIG. 59A), the indicator bar101-05 can be used to visually divide the content portion 101-04 and themenu portion 101-03 of the AUI display 101-02. The indicator bar 101-05can be used in conjunction with the status indicator 101-06 to draw auser's attention to certain menu items. For example, when the menu itemsare arranged in a stacked fashion, the status indicator 101-06 can beused to help vertically align one or more menus and/or menu items. Inthis example, the indicator bar 101-05 and status indicator 101-06(located below the “Reply” item for this example), can help draw theuser's attention to and align the following items: “Email,” “Blend, and“Reply.” In certain embodiments, the indicator bar 101-05 can bedepicted to resemble a watch hand. Moreover, the status indicator 101-06can include color-coded states (e.g., red to indicate an error state andblue to indicate a non-error state). In certain embodiments, thecolor-coded state can be depicted within a portion of the indicator bar101-05 by illuminating pixels of one or more colors. In one example, thecolor-coded state can be provided within the middle portion of theindicator bar as illustrated in FIG. 59A, although this state can bedisplayed in other portions of the AUI display 101-02 as well. Both theindicator bar 101-05 and status indicator 101-06 are additionallydescribed in greater detail above in conjunction with other embodimentsdescribed herein, for example, with reference to paragraph [00855].

In certain embodiments, a minimalistic background can provide a highcontrast with one or more menus of user-selectable items, providingtechnical solutions and practical applications of specific visualprinciples to aid users in navigating the menus and viewing the contentand information described herein. Such visual principles include theminimization of visible content and maximization of background or voidspace so as to reduce visual clutter and emphasize the area of interest.By providing a dark or otherwise uniform background and increasingcontrast between the content and background, the user's attention can bedrawn to the appropriate areas, for example, as described with referenceto paragraph [00102]. In other embodiments the background can includeone or more photographs, videos, or other user-designated content. Incertain embodiments, one or more portions of the background may bedifferent as compared to the remaining portions of the background. Forexample, the menu portion 101-03 can be set by default as amonochromatic background while the remaining portions can be customizedby a user. Default and/or customized backgrounds in various embodimentscan be applied to the backgrounds of the one or more menus for theconcentric circle menus as well, as described in conjunction with FIG.62 below.

In certain embodiments, one or more items from one or more menu (e.g.,first menu 102-01) can be displayed concurrently and the informationrelating to the one or more user-selectable menu items are adapted to bedisplayed concurrently. In one example, as a user selects a differentmenu item from the one previously selected, the previously displayedcontent can be removed from the content portion 101-04 and informationrelated to the newly selected item can be displayed concurrently with atleast one menu in the menu portion 101-03. In other examples, relatedinformation common to the user's previous and newly selected item (tothe extent any exists) can remain displayed on the content portion101-04, while the new information can be added and the previousinformation can be removed.

Detailed Content View

FIG. 60 illustrates a third embodiment of the mobile device illustratedin FIG. 58 depicting a detailed content view. Content portion 101-04 caninclude one or more of current content 102-04, detailed content 103-01,and an interactive content portion 103-02. In the example illustrated inthis figure, a user has selected a category of “Email,” restricting itby one particular email application: “Outlook.” In this example, themenu portion 101-03 has been collapsed (as described in greater detailbelow) to only include only one of the menu levels (here, the second,mobile-application-based, menu level). In other examples, one or more ofthe first and third menus can be concurrently displayed with this menulevel, or in lieu of it. In the example illustrated in FIG. 60, the userhas selected a particular email to reply to (e.g., by selecting a“Reply” function from the third menu). In making this selection, thecontent portion includes not only the original current content 102-04,but also detailed content 103-01 (e.g., including the entire emailmessage or a more detailed excerpt of that email message). Theinteractive content portion 103-02 can allow the user to provide one ormore inputs related to this particular content (specifically, in thisexample, users can input their reply message in the interactive contentportion 103-02 and send the reply message to the original sender(s)through a text-based input, gesture-based input, voice-based input,video/image-based input). Thus, the detailed content view allows usersto drill down to the entire content (such as a message) to more fullyaccess and/or manipulate the content of interest.

The display can be returned from the detailed content view (e.g., asillustrated in FIG. 60) back to the standard content view (e.g., asillustrated in FIGS. 59A and 59B) in various ways. For example, a usercan select (e.g., by tapping or swiping) a portion of the backgroundthat does not contain any text or is outside the content portion 101-04.In other embodiments, a user can select a Back function (e.g., eithervia a separate button or a selection available within one or more of themenu portion 101-03 or content portion 101-04) to return to the standardcontent view. In still other embodiments, a user can select the contentagain (e.g., single or double tap or click) to toggle between the twoviews. In yet another embodiment, a user can make another selection fromthe menu portion 101-03 to return back to the standard content view.

Although the example illustrated in FIG. 60 depicts the current content102-04 above the interactive content portion 103-02, which is depictedabove the detailed content 103-01, this is merely illustrative of oneembodiment, and the information provided within each of these areas canbe located on various portions of the AUI display 101-02 (FIG. 58) (orcombined as a single portion). In one particular embodiment, other areasof the AUI display 101-02 (FIG. 58) can be locked (e.g., will not acceptinputs from a user), while the user is providing inputs (and/or when theinteractive content portion 103-02 is capable of receiving inputs) tothe interactive content portion 103-02. In these various embodiments,the AUI display 101-02 (FIG. 58) can provide additional area for usersto view additional, more detailed information related to particularcontent, and to interact and/or perform functions related that thatinformation.

Subsections of Content Portion

FIG. 61 illustrates a first embodiment of a mobile device foraggregating information on a mobile-based user interface display,depicted in a landscape orientation. In this embodiment, content portion101-04 can include two or more subsections. For example, content portion101-04 can include a first subsection 104-01 and second subsection104-02, although more than two subsections are consistent withembodiments herein. These subsections can create an association betweenor among various information (e.g., the information in one subsectioncan be based on one or more selections from one or more of the othersubsections). In one example, first subsection 104-01 can include a nameof an individual or a group and/or it can include a “new” selection(which can provide a list of just those individuals, groups, and/orparticular individuals within one or more groups that have relevantand/or new content associated with them, as illustrated in FIG. 61 withthe “New” item for selection). In one example, the second sub-section104-02 can include content associated with the name of that individualor group. In this example, by selecting an individual in the firstsubsection 104-01, the user can scroll through the second subsection104-01, which can include messages associated with that individual.These subsections can further include the examples and embodiments asdescribed above, for example, the subsections described in conjunctionwith FIG. 38E, and as described greater detail above in conjunction withother embodiments described herein, for example, as described withreference to paragraphs [00303], [00304], and [00464].

In other embodiments, the content portion 101-04 can include two or moresubsections when the mobile device 101-01 (FIG. 58) is disposed in aportrait orientation, such as for example, in the embodiment depicted inFIG. 58. These subsections can be used in various ways, for example inthe context of a social media application (as described in greaterdetail below), one of the subsections can contain a list of people thatyou are currently following and the other subsection can include astream of content associated with that group of individuals. In thecontext of a messaging application (as described in greater detailbelow), one of the subsections can contain a group and the othersubsection can include a stream of new content associated with thatgroup. For additional embodiments, groups can be organized and displayedacross multiple categories or applications. In still furtherembodiments, a moniker or label can be either user-created orautomatically generated and assigned to a group if the group does notinclude a preassigned group name or label. Further, although not limitedto the embodiments described above, the content portion 101-04 may bedivided into multiple subsections when displayed on a mobile device101-01 (FIG. 58) that includes a relatively large display, such as atablet or laptop (e.g., when disposed in either a portrait or landscapeorientation).

Menu Toggle and Expand/Collapse Menu

In certain embodiments, the one or more menus displayed on the AUIdisplay 101-02 (FIG. 58) in the menu portion 101-03 can toggle betweenbeing displayed to a user and being hidden from view. In one embodiment,the user can toggle between the two by providing an input, (e.g.,swiping up or down, to view or hide the one or more menus,respectively). In other embodiments, the one or more menus displayed inthe menu portion 101-03 can be hidden from the view (such as, forexample, by sliding it up and out of sight) after a period of inactivity(e.g., three seconds of inactivity, although shorter or longer periodsof inactivity are contemplated as well. In certain embodiments, to viewor display a hidden set of one or more menus, a user can either providean input to any portion of the AUI display 101-02 (FIG. 58) (e.g., tapon a portion of the display) or make a selection from within a portionof the content portion 101-04.

In addition to toggling between the hidden and displayed menus, two ormore menus (or individual menu items) can be collapsed and/or expanded,either with or without user input. For additional embodiments, acollapsed menu includes a subset of the total menu levels (or individualitems within one or more of those menu levels) that can be displayed atany given point in time on the menu portion 101-03. For example, if auser has navigated through four menus, a collapsed menu could displaythree or fewer of the menu levels previously navigated (or menus thathave yet to be navigated). In some examples, the collapsed menu mayinclude only the most recently navigated menu (or selected item withinthat menu). In those examples, only that current menu level (orparticular item selected within that menu level) can be displayed in thecollapsed menu. This collapse can occur automatically (e.g., withoutuser input), for example, such that after a user navigates to a thirdmenu level, only one or two of those menu levels are displayed.Triggering this automatic menu collapse at the third level is merelyexemplary, as other menu levels can trigger this function as well.Moreover, the menu collapse can be performed manually, such as through auser input. Similarly, two or more menu levels (or individual menuitems) can be expanded (either partially or fully), again either with orwithout user input. In other examples, the collapsing and expansion ofmenus and/or menu items can be customized by the user. In someembodiments, one or more menus can automatically be removed from thedisplay after a user makes a selection from among the items containedwithin that menu level. For example, if a user is presented with a firstlevel of menu items, after making a selection, that menu level can beremoved from the display and the next or subsequent menu level can bedisplayed (or no additional menu levels can be displayed). This processcan repeat for additional menu levels, thus eliminating the need todisplay multiple levels of menu choices concurrently, which could makethe display appear cluttered depending on its size. In certainembodiments, this feature can be applied to wearable technologiesspecifically, such as the Apple Watch, where the size of the displaysare relatively limited, although it may be applied to other computingdevices as well.

Aggregation and New Content

The systems, methods, and apparatuses described herein can furtherinclude an Aggregation or “Blend” feature. This feature can provide amechanism for which to collect, classify, and/or arrange content in amanner that is more efficiently presented to users, tailored to theirparticular needs, and organized to minimize the amount of time requiredto access and manipulate content most relevant to that particular user.In certain embodiments, this Aggregation feature can be appliedexclusively to New Content, which may include, for example, content thatis new to a particular user, has not yet been received by and/ordisplayed to a user, etc. In other embodiments, the Aggregation or“Blend” feature can be applied to not only New Content, but othercontent as well. In still further embodiments, this feature can beapplied to content other than New Content. Further detailed descriptionis provided below in the context of various exemplary embodiments.

For example, the information or content provided in the content portion101-04 may relate to one or more user-selectable items from one or moreof the menus displayed in the menu portion 101-03. In certainembodiments, information relating to one or more user-selectable itemsfrom one or more menus among the various menu levels can be aggregatedand displayed in the content portion 101-04 on the AUI display 101-02(FIG. 58). Specifically, for example, the relevant information orcontent can be aggregated though the Blend function. The Blend functioncan aggregate, concatenate, and/or coalesce some or all relevant contentand present it (e.g., display) as a condensed set of content (e.g., asingle menu of content, multiple sub-menus (e.g., displayed on two ormore subsections as described above) of content, etc.) as described ingreater detail below.

An example of a Blend option, which—when selected by the user—canexecute the Blend function, is illustrated in FIGS. 59A and 59B. In thatembodiment, the Blend item has been selected within the second menu102-02, containing a list of applications available to the user. Whenselecting Blend in this embodiment, the Blend function will aggregaterelevant content of one or more (in this example, all) of thoseapplications (in this example, because the category is email as depictedin the first menu 102-01, all relevant emails across all email-basedapplications will be aggregated and condensed for display in contentportion 101-04). In other examples, if the user selects Blend in thefirst menu 102-01 (e.g., categories), the Blend function will aggregaterelevant content across one or more (or all) categories available in thefirst menu 102-01. In other embodiments, relevant content can beaggregated from only the items presented in the current menu level, andin other embodiments, relevant content can be aggregated from one ormore menu level below the current menu for which the user has selectedBlend. The aggregated information or content and the order in which itis presented to the user (e.g., displayed within one or menus) can bedisplayed in any manner as described with regard to content displayedwithin the content portion 101-04 above (e.g., a vertically orientatedmenu of content, as depicted, for example, in FIGS. 59A and 59B). Forexample, this aggregated content can be presented as current content102-04 and additional content 102-05 (FIG. 59A) as described above inconjunction with the embodiment illustrated in that figure. In oneexample, the aggregated information can be arranged in reversechronological order (or forward chronological order), by applicationcategory, application type, application function, etc., alphabetically,reverse alphabetically, or any other manner for ordering and/orarranging the content.

The relevant information that the Blend function aggregates can beembodied in various forms. In certain embodiments, the relevantinformation includes New Content. New Content can include various typesof content, including, but not limited to: (a) content that is new to auser, such as content that the user has not previously viewed oraccessed; (b) content that has been received, transmitted, and/orcreated since the last time the user navigated the one or more menus toobtain additional, related information; (c) content that has not beenreceived by or transmitted to, the mobile device 101-01 (FIG. 58) orclient server or a data service (e.g., 109-07 (FIG. 66)); or (d) contentthat has not been previously displayed on the AUI display 101-02 (FIG.58).

In other embodiments, the relevant information that the Blend functionaggregates can include content other than New Content. Still further,the relevant information that the Blend function aggregates can includea subset of New Content (e.g., only content from known contacts,senders, social media connections, etc.). In this example, the NewContent can be filtered such that certain content (such as junk email)will not be included in the aggregated content set, even if it is new tothe user). By employing one or more subsets of the Blend feature, userscan customize the information that is aggregated such that differentversions of Blend are available to the user, e.g., provided as aseparate menu level (for example, a menu level directly below the Blendmenu level) of items, each containing one or more sub-Blend items forthe user to choose from. For additional embodiments, content can bepushed to mobile device 101-01, or it can be pulled from the one or morehost servers (such as content producers, e.g., 108-03 and 108-04 (FIG.65)). Embodiments of these processes are described in greater detailbelow in conjunction with FIGS. 65-66. The pushing and/or pulling canoccur on a periodic basis, intermittently, or on demand (such as, forexample, when a user requests it), and it can be based on the categoryof content (e.g., email, text message, phone message, video message,social media, website content, news content, shopping, online forums,weather, public safety, entertainment, productivity, lifestyle, utility,education, gaming, business, travel, law enforcement, services, devices,software applications, building/facilities, security, medical, and anyother network-based content etc.), the application within one or morethe categories (Outlook, Facebook Messenger, Reddit, Instagram,Snapchat, Facebook, Linked-In, Slack, etc.), and/or the function withinone or applications (e.g., reply to email, follow an individual onTwitter, etc.).

The applications, programs, and other software types described above,and throughout the disclosure, as being compatible with embodiments ofthe methods and systems described herein are provided by way of exampleonly. Embodiments of the methods and systems described herein arecompatible with and may enhance interaction with any suitable softwareapplication or program. Further non-limiting examples of suitablesoftware applications and programs are provided in Tables 1-7, as shownbelow.

Using email to illustrate this feature, in one illustrative embodiment,an email host (e.g., Microsoft Outlook) pushes new content (e.g., email)on a periodic basis (e.g., every 30 seconds). When the user becomes therecipient of a new email (for example, the author transmits an email tothe user's Outlook account) that email—once received at the emailserver—would be treated as New Content. In this example, the new emailwould be treated as New Content because, for example, it includescontent that the user has not previously viewed or accessed. At the nextperiodic push command, the email server would transmit the email to theuser's mobile device 101-01 (FIG. 58) and it would appear as content inthe content portion 101-04 (assuming, for this example, that the relatedcontent displayed includes New Content). In this example, the contentwould appear in an aggregated manner with all other new emails (if, forexample, the user selected the Blend option, at within the emailcategory as described above), or with all new emails in the user'sOutlook account (if, for example, the user selected Outlook as theparticular application).

In certain embodiments, the New Content can be stored in a queue orother data structure (such as by synchronizing content with therespective hosts storing and/or transmitting the content), and thosedata can expire upon the occurrence of one or more events (such as, forexample, after a user has viewed or accessed the content, after acertain period of time has elapsed irrespective of whether the userpreviously viewed or accessed the content, etc.). In other embodiments,New Content can be pushed to (or pulled from) one or more hosts withoutsynchronization. In still other embodiments, New Content can be storedon a mobile device 101-01 and/or or client server or a data service(e.g., 108-09 (FIG. 66)). In other embodiments, the receipt, storage,and removal of New Content can be customizable, such as deleting allpreviously viewed New Content, deleting or keeping New Content based onan amount of time for which the content has existed, keeping all NewContent, purging all New Content, synchronization parameters, etc.Additional embodiments are described in greater detail in conjunctionwith FIGS. 65-66.

In certain embodiments, a history feature can be employed. This featuremay allow users to track the content based on various ways theypreviously interacted with it. For example, if the content is NewContent, that content could be disassociated with other aggregatedcontent after the user views it. In this regard, because the content hasbeen disassociated with the other aggregated content (in this example,it is no longer New Content because the user has now viewed it), thecontent will not be displayed to the user with the remaining (unviewed)content). To allow the user to still track, view, access, and interactwith this content after it has been disassociated and removed from beingdisplayed, one or more history files may be created that provide asummary of the content that a user previously accessed, viewed,interacted with, etc. This summary may further provide the user with theability to re-access, re-view, and/or continue interacting with thatcontent after it has been removed from the display (e.g., through alink, separate menu, etc.) by accessing the history file. The historyfile may be created for all content or based on a subset ofapplications, etc., and over various periods of time. Moreover, thissummary may be divided into various categories, for example the contenta user selected (e.g., “click history”), viewed, flagged, liked,commented on, responded to, or otherwise interacted with.

User and Content Analytics

In certain embodiments, the users' interactions with content and otherusers may be monitored, collected, tracked, and/or stored for variouspurposes. This information can be collected on various basis, e.g., byindividual user, an aggregation of users (e.g., two or more users), bygroup, by content, by categories of application, by individualapplication, by functions performed, by geographical location, by amountof time and/or data, etc. For example, historical information can bestored, e.g., as a log or other suitable data structure as describedwith reference to paragraphs [00145]. In certain embodiments, thishistorical information may include information on an individual-userbasis.

In one example, information may be collected with regard to what contentthat particular user accessed or viewed, how frequently the user viewedparticular content (or used an application, category of applications,etc.) over a given period of time, how much data was transmitted andreceived by that user over a given time period (e.g. the total number ofbytes of data), the type of data (e.g., text, photos, videos), thecontent of the data, etc. Further, information may be collectedregarding where the user was geographically located when accessing thecontent, what particular content the user is aggregating, whatthird-party applications and/or other users relate to that aggregation,and/or what commercial entities does the content pertain to. In otherexamples, this information may be collected in an aggregated manner, forexample, by aggregating this information on two or more users thatfrequently interact with one another. The information collected may bestored on the computing device itself, or in the alternative,transmitted to a server (e.g., and stored on data store 109-07 in dataservice 109-08 of FIG. 66). That information may be aggregated,organized, and/or analyzed to improve the user's experience by furtherrefining the frequency that certain content is display, the type ofcontent, the order in which it is presented to the user, etc., includingadvertising content, for example, as described with reference toparagraphs [00145].

This information may further be used to allow content providers tobetter assess the value of incorporating their content (includingadvertising) into the user's content, and how highly to prioritize itamong the user's content available to be viewed (e.g., acontent-provider may be willing to pay more to highly prioritize contentthat it is reasonably assured would be of relatively high value thatthat particular user). Further, in certain embodiments, additional userinteractions may be monitored, collected, tracked, and/or stored, suchas payments or other e-commerce activities. For example, if a user usesthe “Shopping” category to make purchases, various aspects of thetransaction can be recorded including when the transaction occurred, howmuch was paid, what goods or services did it relate to, the individualor entities that originated the payment and those who received it, whatapplications and/or interfaces were involved to complete thetransaction, etc., along with any other third-parties or intermediariesinvolved in that transaction.

Specific Examples of Categories, Applications, And Functions

As described above, for additional embodiments, the various menus (e.g.,first, second, third, fourth, etc.) can include certain type of menuitems. For example, the first menu of user-selectable menu items caninclude one or more categories of mobile-device-based applications(although non-mobile-based applications are contemplated as well). Thesecan include, for example, electronic mail (e-mail), phone calls, socialmedia, text messaging (SMS, MSMS), audio/visual conferencing, andshopping, although other categories are contemplated as well. The firstmenu may also include one or more “Blend” options, as described above,that aggregate one or more of these categories. For example, a first“Blend” option may aggregate all of these categories, while a second“Blend” option may aggregate messaging categories (e-mail,text-messaging, social media-based messaging, etc.), while still a third“Blend” option may be a user-defined blend option.

Continuing with example described above, the second menu ofuser-selectable menu items can include mobile-device-based applicationswithin a particular category of the first menu. For example, in theemail category, applications can include: Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, Outlook,other POP- or IMAP-based email applications, or any other applicationfor accessing e-mail. For the social media category, applications caninclude Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, Pinterest, orany other social-media based application. For the messaging category,applications can include Facebook Messenger, Twitter Messaging, InstantMessenger, What's App, or any other texting-based application. Incertain embodiments, the content associated with these applications canordered by most recently posted/Tweeted, most Liked/Re-Tweeted, etc.

For the audio/visual conferencing category, applications can includeFaceTime, What's App, V-chat, Skype, or any other phone-basedapplication. For the shopping category, applications can include Amazon,Google, eBay, or any other shopping-based application. In one example,the shopping application includes the application and features describedby U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/847,398, which is fullyincorporated herein by reference. As described above, a second menu mayalso include one or more aggregated “Blend” options, including one ormore of the second menu categories.

Continuing still with the example described above, the third menu ofuser-selectable menu items can include one or more functions related tothe particular applications within each category. A few examples areprovided: For the email category, functions can include: new, reply,reply all, forward, flag, and delete; for the social media category,functions can include tweet, follow, like, comment, share; for themessaging category, functions can include reply, new, attachment, link;for the audio/visual conferencing category, functions can includetranslate message, return call, place call; for the shopping category,functions can include buy, list, like, comment, share. The functionsavailable within each of these categories are merely exemplary and notexhaustive, as the methods, systems, and computer readable mediadescribed throughout can include any of the functionality associatedwith a given mobile-based application.

The various menus and related content can be applied to otherapplications as well. For example, the menus and content can relate to acalendaring feature. In this example, the first menu could includecategories of tasks to accomplish (e.g., work, home improvement, family,etc.) and the second menu can include various tasks within a category(e.g., set up weekly conferences, paint fence, fill out and returnschool paperwork, etc.). In other examples, one or more of these menuscan relate to particular individuals, such as family members, particularmembers of a work team, etc. so that tasks and reminders can be setbased on individuals and/or groups rather than types of tasks toaccomplish. Continuing with these examples, the third menu could includefunctions and/or sub-tasks or sub-groups associated with tasks,individuals, and/or groups (e.g., purchase additional paint, pick updaughter from rehearsal on Friday, etc.). Menus can includetemporal-based functions as well, for example, scheduling a date and/ortime of the task, rescheduling the task (e.g., to another date and/ortime), and/or snoozing the task to provide a short delay. These menuscan further include a feature for adding a new task, deleting tasks,importing tasks from other applications, etc., for example, as items forselection among one or more the menus.

In another example, the menus and related content can be applied toother applications as well, such as for entertainment-related services.In one example, the first menu could include various media services,such as paid subscription services (e.g., Disney Now, History Vault, HBONow, etc.). The content provided within these of these services can beaggregated (e.g., using the Blend feature described above) so that userscan select from a variety of programming among one or more of theseservices. In other example, users could select an individual service(e.g., as a user-selectable choice in the first menu). In one example,the second menu could include genres of movies (e.g., comedy, drama,sci-fi, etc.) or, in other examples, it could include types ofprogramming (movies, television, sporting events, etc.). In certainembodiments, the aggregated content could include only New Content,although in other embodiments, it can exclude New Content and/or be ahybrid of New Content and content other than New Content. In certainembodiments, New Content can include, for example, content that is brandnew, new to that particular user, etc. In additional embodiments, thethird menu can include functions for viewing, sharing, etc. the content.For example, the third menu could include Play, Pause, Stop, Comment,Like, etc. functions that allow users to perform certain functionsvis-à-vis the content. Although not expressly described herein, otherfunctions can be made available to users as well.

Vehicle-Based Applications

In certain embodiments, the various features described throughout can beapplied in the context of automobile-based applications as well. Forexample, the AUIs described throughout can be tailored to seamlesslyintegrate one or more of electrical, mechanical, and computer systems ofvarious vehicles, such as automobiles, boats, motorcycles, motor homes,etc., to aggregate various aspects of the same into a streamlined andsimplified interface.

In certain embodiments, the various aspects of these vehicle systems tobe aggregated and displayed to the user (e.g., the vehicle operator) caninclude Primary and Secondary Experiences. Using an automobile as anexample, a Primary Experience could include one or more featurestypically located on the automobile's dashboard and/or steering column.Those may include: speedometer, tachometer, cruise control, fuel (level,consumption rate), battery (level, consumption rate), turning signals,drive control (e.g., P-R-D-L, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, etc.), vehicle status(engine, tires, etc.), sensors, mileage (total, travel, remaining),driving notifications (direction, front/side/back sensors, weatherwarnings (ice, wet, temperature)), lights (parking, driving, bright,fog), wipers (front, back, headlights), etc.

Continuing with the automobile example, Secondary Experiences mayinclude additional features of the vehicles, such as environment(defrosting, cabin temp (cool, heat), airflow (recycle, outside), seat(cool, heat), steering wheel (cool, heat)), ergonomic (seat adjustment,lumbar, steering wheel), entertainment (radio (AM, FM, satellite),streaming, media (video, auxiliary)), information (weather, travelalerts, law enforcement, emergency services), navigation (map, find,previous), time, communication (phone, text, email, social media),access control (windows, sun roof, moon roof, convertible, doors, hatch,mirror (side, rear view), cameras (front, back, side), andconfiguration/setup parameters. One or more of these aspects, whethercontrolled electrically, mechanically, or by a computer, can becontrolled by the user through the AUI described herein, with theability for those controls to be manually overridden if/when necessary.In one example, the first menu can include Primary Experiences, such asGear, Lights, etc., and the second menu can include different gears(e.g., P, R, N, D, etc.) when the Gear option is selected, or thevarious light options (low beams, brights, fog lights, etc.) when theLights option is selected. Using the latter example, after selecting theLights feature, the third menu can include various functions of thelights, such as auto off, manual on, brights off, etc. In theseexamples, the content portion can include gauges, such as tachometer,fuel, engine temperature, sensors, speedometer (including cruise controlindicators and/or controls), etc. With the cruise control feature, auser can select the desired speed manually (e.g., through a scroll wheelof various speed options on the display) or based on previous presets,etc. Once the user selects a speed, the content portion can display oneor both of the current speed and/or the preset cruise control speed. Thecontent portion can further include additional items and/or content suchas the current temperature (inside and/or outside of the cabin, thedirection the vehicle is traveling, a map (including a depiction of themap, such as shown on a GPS), the current mileage, drivetrain (e.g.,4×4, AWD, etc.) based on selections made, for example, from the advancedcontext menu, as described in further detail below.

In certain embodiments, the user can control the AUI in accordance withone or more of the manners described above (e.g., voice command,mechanical controls, touch-based, or any combination thereof). Forvoice-command controls, a user can relay a command such as by stating aspecific command (e.g., “set cabin temperature to 25 degrees Celsius”),through a “hyperspace” command (e.g., “return to the root menu”; “accessexterior light controls”), or any combination thereof. In otherexamples, users can input mechanical commands in a variety of ways, suchas by buttons, sliders, and/or wheels located, for example, on thesteering wheel and/or dashboard (e.g., rotating the wheel with theuser's thumbs and/or fingers and pressing the wheel to make aselection), rotating knobs located, for example, on the dashboard and/orconsole (e.g., rotating the knob to scroll through menu items and/orcontent, pressing the knob to make a selection), and/or joystickcontrols located, for example, proximate to one of more of the vehicle'sseats (e.g., moving the joystick in various linear directions, throughcircular motions, etc.) that are accessible to the drivers and/orpassengers. In some examples, a combination of two or more can beutilized (e.g., using a button in conjunction with a joystick, usingvoice-commands in conjunction with a rotating knob, etc.).

Using the joystick example, a joystick could be employed to allow a userto move a cursor or the like on the display to navigate menu itemsand/or content (e.g., move up, down, left, right, etc.). For example, ifthe driver wishes to check the tire pressure of each of the vehicle'stires, the user can first navigate through the necessary menus to obtaina visual representation of the four tires and use the joystick to selectwhich tire to inquire about (e.g., pushing the joystick to the top leftto inquire about the driver's side front tire). In other examples,mechanical controls can be disposed near the rear of the vehicle suchthat passengers in the rear can control the AUI as well (e.g., tocontrol rear-seat television screens, comfort aspects within thevehicle, rear lighting, etc.). In this regard, these rear controls couldbe applied to limousines and/or ride-share services, where the primarypassengers ride in the rear of the vehicle, thus allowing them tocontrol aspects of the vehicle unrelated to those aspects that thedriver needs to operate the vehicle. In other aspects, these controlscan be temporarily disabled through a lock feature or the like toprevent passengers (e.g., children) from accessing the AUI.

In certain embodiments, the first menu can include one or items from thePrimary Experience aspects described above. For example, the first menuof items could include the following items: Fuel, Lights, Wipers, etc.In this example, the second menu of items can include additional aspectsor functions related to each of the Primary Experiences. For example,under the Fuel option, the second menu could include: Level, ConsumptionRate, Range, etc.; under Lights, the second menu could include: Parking,Driving, Fog, etc.; under Wipers the second menu can include: Front,Back, etc. Continuing with this example, the third menu of items caninclude functions related to each of the secondary menu items. Forexample, under Wipers, the menu of choices could include: On, Off,Intermittent, etc. In this example, therefore, various aspects of thevehicle can be controlled and/or monitored through the user'sselections. In other embodiments, the first menu can include one or moreitems from the Secondary Experience aspects described above. In otherembodiments, the first menu can include one or more items from thePrimary Experience aspects described above, and the second menu caninclude one or more items from the Secondary Experience aspectsdescribed above (or vice versa). In embodiments where the Primary andSecondary Experience aspects are located on different menu levels,additional menu levels can be generated and displayed (e.g., anintervening menu) containing additional items for users to choose,and/or selections from the menu level can generate and display relatedcontent after making a selection from the menu. For example, if thefirst menu items contain Primary Experience aspects and the second menucontains Secondary Experience aspects, and a user selects “Speed” in thefirst menu, the content portion can provide the vehicle's current speedwithout the need for additional menu items for the user to choose frombased on that selection. More generally, the content displayed canrelate to the user's selection from among one or more of the menu itemsby including notifications, warnings, information, and/or other contentrelated to the user's selections. For example, if the user selectsSatellite under the Entertainment category, the content portion caninclude the title of the song, artist, etc.

In certain embodiments, one or more of the menus can additionallyinclude the Blend feature described above. With the Blend feature,various aspects of the vehicle can be aggregated and displayed to theuser to provide the user with the most important, relevant, preferredand/or urgent controls, warnings, notifications, etc. In certainembodiments, the Blend feature can be applied to a single menu level(e.g., aggregating the most urgent aspects from the second menu levelacross one or more items from the first level), or it could be appliedto multiple menu levels, e.g., aggregating aspects from the second andthird menus. In one example, users can use the Blend feature tocustomize their driving experience by setting preferences for how and/orwhen to aggregate menu items and content. For example, users may wish toaggregate the Fuel, Speed, and Entertainment aspects if they wish tocontinuously monitor their speed and fuel consumption with the abilityto quickly change radio stations while driving. Because the Blendfeatures make the AUI completely customizable, the number of uniquecombinations of menu items and content to be displayed is virtuallylimitless.

In certain embodiments, the aggregated content can include New Content(as described in greater detail above), or content other than NewContent (or combinations thereof). An example of New Content could be,for example, a new/recent low fuel warning, or cold weather alert. Forembodiments that display New Content, the content and/or menu itemsavailable for selection can be generated and displayed dynamicallyand/or automatically. For example, if the vehicle's tire pressuremonitor system senses low tire pressure, the content portion can displaya warning that supersedes the previously selected content to warn thedriver. Other examples of New Content could include other warnings (suchas sensors to determine the vehicles proximity to obstacles, low fuelwarnings, law enforcement and/or traffic updates, etc.).

In certain embodiments, the menu items and/or content displayed is notnecessarily limited to the display of the computing device (e.g., mobilephone). In some embodiments, some or all of the menu items and/orcontent can be displayed, navigated, manipulated, etc. through thevehicle itself. For example, for vehicles with one or more digitaldisplays (e.g., in the vehicle's dashboard, console, televisiondisplays, etc.) menu items and content can be displayed throughvehicle's one or more displays. In other examples, various menu itemsand/or content could be displayed in and/or projected on to thevehicle's windshield, such as a Heads-Up Display. In some embodiments,the menu items and/content are displayed among two or more of thesedisplays (e.g., mobile device display, dashboard, console, windshield,etc.).

In other embodiments more than one instance of the AUI could beconcurrently running either on a single display or across two or moredisplays. For example, the driver and one or more passengers in theautomobile could each execute their own stand-alone version of the AUI,each on a different display screen. In this example, the driver couldcontrol certain aspects of the vehicle typically associated withcontrolling and operating a vehicle (e.g., speed control, wiper blades,etc.), and the passenger can control other aspects, such as theenvironmental controls or entertainment aspects within the vehicle. Inone example, each the AUIs could be displayed on a single display, suchas a tablet or the factory display integrated in the vehicle. In thelatter example, the display could be divided into two or more distinctareas—for example, one for the driver (e.g., top or left portion) andone for the passenger (e.g., bottom or right portion), although otherconfigurations and/or divisions of the display are contemplated as well.In other examples, each user could operate the AUI through a standalonedisplay (e.g., driver through the vehicle's dashboard and the passengerthrough a console display). In still further examples, portions fromeach AUI could be divided among two or more displays such that each ofthe driver and the passengers have access to a portion of two or more ofthe displays from which the AUI is divided among. In certain examples,different portions of the display can be controlled in different manners(e.g., mechanical control on the steering wheel, voice-based, etc.).Alternatively, more than one instance of the AUI can be running on asingle display (e.g., so that the driver and a passenger haveduplicative control of and access to the AUI). In other examples,multiple users could access a single display. In this example, each usercould have a unique profile, thus allowing the AUI to associateparticular users with their previous activities and preferences tomaximize the customization of displayed menu items and/or content.

In certain embodiments, the AUI can be driven by one or more computerswith a single processor or one or more computers with multipleprocessors. In certain single-processor embodiments, the processor candrive one or more of the multiple displays. For certain multi-processorembodiments, each processor can drive a single, unique display, or eachof the processors can drive two or more of the multiple displays. Inother embodiments, one or more of the processers can be multithreaded toprovide multiple threads of execution for two or more instances of theAUI, either displayed on a single display or among two or moredisplays—e.g., each thread driving a single display. In certainexamples, a single multithreaded processor can run multiple AUI threads,where each thread drives a different display. In other embodiments,multiple instances of the AUI can be driven either by one or moreindividual processor per computer for each display or one or moremultithreaded processors on one or more computers for one or moredisplays.

In still other embodiments, the controls and/or the one or more displayscan be disposed in a geographically disparate location from the vehicleitself. In these embodiments, the AUI can be used to control the vehicleremotely, which can be used for autonomous vehicles or the like. Inother examples, one or more users can remotely control certain aspectsof the vehicle (e.g., entertainment, etc.) even with a driver present inthe vehicle. For example, a third-party (such as a vendor or advertiser)could remotely control the content being displayed on one or moredisplays within the vehicle so that the passengers and/or driver wouldreceive and view this displayed content as they travelled to theirdestinations. In one example, a ride-share company may wish to pair withan advertiser so that the advertiser could remotely control the contentparticular users see during their riding experience.

Following on the user and content analytics features described above,information about users, their preferences, geographical locations,previous destinations, etc. can be monitored, collected, and analyzed toidentify custom-tailored content that may be of particular interest forthat user to see or experience. For example, these analytics features,when applied to the automobile application, could be used determine thata particular user often stops at a favorite fast food restaurant forlunch several times a week. In other examples, these features can beused to allow local stores to send customized and/or tailoredadvertisements to the user, or these features could be used to generateand/or display recommendations for certain types of businesses withinthe area (e.g., local coffee shops) that may be of interest to thatparticular user. In other examples, by collecting this information,content (e.g., a coupon to a local restaurant) could be displayed to theuser (e.g., as New Content) while traveling within a certain perimeterfrom that restaurant. More generally, these analytics features cancollect and analyze information related to users and/or theirestablished profiles, e.g., their preferences, where they have gonebefore, how often, where they are currently, etc. By doing so, thirdparties, such as ride-share companies, vendors, etc., could use thisinformation to help customize a user's experience such that the content(e.g., New Content) displayed to these users are the most relevantcontent based on the historical and current information that theanalytics features has collected and analyzed.

In alternative embodiments, an advanced context menu can be provided, asdescribed more generally in greater detail above, for example, asdescribed with reference to paragraph [00243]. The advanced context menucan include advanced menu items that provide the user with the abilityto select additional menu items and/or content. For example, theadvanced context menu can include information and/or warnings (e.g.,Show Travel Info, Show Car Warnings) and/or particular Dashboard itemsto select (e.g., Cabin, Windows and Doors, Navigation, Entertainment,Information, Communication). Further, this advanced context menu caninclude configuration items, such as Set Profile, Setup, Max Screen,Normal Screen, etc. Under Max Screen item, the desired content can bedisplayed on the entire display (or at least 90% of the area of thedisplay), e.g., a full-sized map if the user desires to view the map fornavigation and/or weather. The user can exit the full screen view byselecting the Normal Screen item in the advanced context menu.

In one example, if the user selects Show Travel Info, the additionalitems and/or content can include, for example, the current temperature(inside and/or outside the vehicle), the direction the vehicle istraveling, a map (e.g., GPS map), the current mileage, drivetrain type(e.g., 4×4, AWD, etc.). In another example, if the user selects Show CarWarnings, the content portion could include various icons, such as anengine, tire, road and/or “other warnings” icon displaying a warningand/or providing a message if a problem has been detected and/or a limithas been exceeded for various aspects of the vehicle, the road, or theenvironment. In response to a selection of the Cabin item, the firstmenu can include items including Climate, Seats, Steering Wheel, etc.

When Climate is selected, multiple menus can be provided, for example,in the content portion. One menu can include items such as Temperature,AC, Fan, Vent, Humidity. Another menu can include the currently settemperature, Off, Low, Recycled air, etc. A third menu can include aselection of the precise temperature (e.g., by degrees) for the user toset the cabin temperature to, speed of the fan, etc. Under the Seatsitem, one or more menus can be provided by, for example, the secondmenu, including items that include Adjustment, Temperature, etc. WhenAdjustment is selected, for example, the content portion can includeadditional menus, such as Position, Lumbar, etc. Still further, thecontent portion could include a virtual cursor (e.g., with a series ofarrows) that, when selected, allow the user to make adjustments to seat(e.g., push the arrow from the virtual cursor down, and the seat movesdown, etc.). In other embodiments, the third menu can provide furtheritems to select, for example which seat to adjust (e.g., Driver,Passenger, Rear Left, Rear Right, etc.). When Temperature is selected,the third menu can include similar items as described above forAdjustment (e.g., Driver, Passenger, Rear Left, Rear Right, etc.) andthe content portion can include one or more menus to adjust thetemperature of the selected item (e.g., the steering wheel). Similaradjustments to other components of the car (e.g., mirrors) can beadjusted in the manner described above, for example, using the virtualcursor.

Under the Windows and Doors menu, additional adjustments can be made tothe windows and doors, as described above. For example, after selectingthis option, the first menu can include Windows, Doors, Hatch/Trunk,Roof, etc. and the content portion can include additional menus. Usingthe Windows option, one menu can include the particular door or windowto adjust (e.g., Driver, Passenger, Rear Left, Rear Center, etc.) andanother menu can include the degree to which that particular windowshould be closed (e.g., Closed, 10% Open, 20% Open, . . . , Fully Open,etc.). Increments other than 10% increments are contemplated as well.Another menu can include items such as Lock, Unlock, etc. Similar itemsare available for the Door option as well (e.g., users can select theparticular door, whether it is to be locked or unlocked, open or closed,to what degree it should be open/closed, etc.)

Regarding the Navigation menu, in one example, the full display can bedepicted as a map, such as a GPS, or a portion of the display caninclude one or more menus (e.g., a first menu with items including Map,Destination, Route, etc.), and the remainder of the display can includethe map (e.g., when the user selects the Map menu item). UnderDestination, the second menu can include additional items such asPrevious, By Category, By Address, etc. If a user selects Previous, thecontent portion can include a list of previous addresses and/orlandmarks that particular user has (or other users have) visited and/orstored previously in their preferences. If the user selects By Category,one or more additional menus can be displayed. For example, one menu caninclude items including Near Me, Near Destination, Near City/Town.Another menu can include particular category types to select. Stillfurther, another menu can include a particular place and/or location andthe distance needed to travel to arrive there. In this embodiment—and inall previous and subsequent embodiments described herein—these menus(e.g., the menus displayed in the content portion) can be arranged as aseries of concurrently displayed dial-type menus, as described, forexample, in greater detailed above in paragraph [00303].

Under the Entertainment menu, a menu can be displayed allowing a user toturn the entertainment system on or off. In one example, the first menucan include Radio, Satellite, Auxiliary, Streaming, etc., and the secondmenu can include types (e.g., FM or AM under the Radio item). Continuingwith this radio example, when FM is selected, the content portion caninclude one or more additional menus. For example, it could include amenu of previously stored stations, the current station, etc. Anothermenu in this portion can include the radio presets by frequency (e.g.,99.1, 104.1, etc.) or by other constant or variable, discrete radiofrequency increments, for example, arranged in increasing (eitherregular or irregular) frequency increments (e.g., 0.2 MHz increments).Under the Information menu, the first menu can include items such asWeather, Travel, Search, etc. The second menu can include items such asMap, Destination, etc. And the third menu can include items such asLocal, Destination, etc. In one example, if the user selects Weatherfrom the first menu, Map from the second menu, and Local from the thirdmenu, the content portion can include a weather radar map of the currentprecipitation over a localized area of the vehicle. Continuing with theWeather example, once a user selects Weather, the second menu caninclude items including Map, Forecast, etc. If the user selectsForecast, the third menu can include Local, Destination, etc. Similar tothe Map selection described, above, once selected, a weather forecastcan be displayed in the content portion of the display. Further, underthe Search option, the content portion can include an interface to allowthe user to perform a search—e.g., a web-based search (such as Google),a GPS search, etc.

Concentric Menus

FIG. 62 illustrates an alternative embodiment of a mobile device foraggregating information on a mobile-based user interface display. Inthis embodiment, the menu portion 101-03 can include a scroll zone105-01 and one or more of a first menu 102-01, a second menu 102-02, anda third menu 102-03 of one or more user-selectable menu items (althoughadditional menus are contemplated as well). In this example, two or moreof these menu are adapted to be displayed as a series of concentricwheels or circles (although other shapes are contemplated as wellincluding ovals or other geometric shapes), such that the menu itemsfrom each of the menu levels are formed along the arc of each of thecircles. In this example, only a portion of the entire menu may bedisplayed (e.g., on the portion of each circle's arc within thedisplay), while the remaining elements may be rotated from outside theviewable display to a viewable portion of the display (such as withinthe menu portion 102-03).

The scroll zone 105-01 can be used to manipulate one or more of thesemenus in this fashion (such as by users sliding one or more of theirfingers and/or thumbs across the display—e.g., in a diagonal motion,although other directions are contemplated as well). In otherembodiments, the scroll zone can include an area of the menu portion102-03 (or other area of the display) for the user to manipulate inorder to rotate the one or more of the first 102-01, second 102-02, andthird menus 102-03, as illustrated in this particular embodiment.Although the menu portion 101-03 is illustrated in this figure as beingdisposed below the content portion 101-04 on the AUI display 101-02,other locations are contemplated as well.

In certain embodiments, only the first menu 102-01 (e.g., category menu)is displayed on the menu portion 101-03 (although in other embodimentsmore than one menu can be displayed to a user initially). A user canselect the menu (e.g., by clicking on the first menu 102-01) and rotatethe menu through its various available items by manipulating the scrollzone 105-01 as described above. In other examples, the user need notselect the menu before manipulating it. After a user a selected an item(e.g., by stopping the rotation after relocating the item to an activeportion of the menu portion 101-03 (e.g., at the top of the circle)),the next menu (e.g., a second menu 102-02 that includes applicationspertaining to the selected category) can be displayed in the menuportion 101-03. This menu can be displayed either as an inner or outerconcentric circle relative to the first menu 102-01, or the first menu102-01 can be relocated to another portion of the menu portion 101-03(e.g., expanded wider, or shrunken narrower) and the next menu (here,the second menu 102-02) can be displayed in the place where the firstmenu 102-01 was previously displayed. This process can continue withthird 102-03, fourth, etc. menus. In one example, the highesthierarchical menu level can be displayed at the outer most ring ofconcentric circles. In further examples, two or more menus can becollapsed and/or expanded in a similar fashion as described in greaterdetail above. The content provided in the content proton 101-04 also canbe accessed, displayed, and manipulated in a similar manner as describedabove, for example, in conjunction with FIGS. 59A, 59B, and 60.

As a user scrolls through the various menus, one or more of the othermenus displayed can be locked so that they cannot be manipulated by theuser while the user is manipulating (or has selected) a different menulevel. This locking process can occur automatically after a user hasmade a particular selection (either of a menu or of content in thecontent portion 101-04) or one or more of the menu levels can bemanually toggled between the locked and unlocked portion by providing aninput (e.g., tapping on a menu item or content). In some embodiments, atleast a portion of the menus from the menu portion can be overlaid overtop the content displayed in the content portion 101-04. The overlay canbe removed by manual manipulation (e.g., as the user swipes up, down, oruses two or more fingers to manipulate the display) or after a usermakes a selection on the content, or automatically (e.g., after acertain period of time elapses). In other embodiments, one or more ofthe scroll zone 105-01 and first 102-01, second 102-02, and third 102-03menu can be centered (for example horizontally) on the display (asillustrated in FIG. 62), or they can be located on either side (e.g.,left or right), or on any other portion of the display. In certainembodiments, the location of these menus can be arranged in a manner tomaximize the ergonomic comfort of users while they scroll through themenus, e.g., using a swiping action with a single digit, such as athumb. When disposed on either the left or right portions of thedisplay, the menu options can be displayed on a wheel with the itemspresented at a 45-degree angle, although other angles are contemplatedas well. Users can manually manipulate the location of this zone andmenus based on their input (e.g., using a single digit, two fingers,sliding and/or tapping the menu, using the third dimension of a 3Ddisplay, using haptic inputs, etc., or any other input manner describedherein) to relocate them to other portions of the display.

Methods, Systems, Computer Readable Media

FIG. 63 illustrates a first embodiment of a method for aggregatinginformation on a mobile-based user interface display. FIG. 64illustrates a first embodiment of a system and computer readable mediumfor aggregating information on a mobile-based user interface display.These figures will be described in conjunction with one another.

FIG. 64 describes a system 107-00 for aggregating information adaptedfor output to a mobile-based graphical user interface (GUI). In certainembodiments, the system 107-00 can include at least one processor107-01, a mobile device 101-01, and a computer readable storage medium107-02, which can be configured to store a computer application 107-03.One or more of these elements can be communicatively coupled through awired and/or wireless communication system, such as the Internet 170-04.For additional embodiments, one or more of the processor 107-01 and thestorage medium 107-02 can be integrated within, or made part of, mobiledevice 101-01. In still further embodiments, the at least one processor107-01 can be configured to execute instructions of the computerapplication 107-03 for performing certain methods, as described ingreater detail below.

In some embodiments, mobile device 101-01 can communicate with one ormore computing devices through the internet 107-04 or through any othercommunicative manner, such as Near Field Communication (NFC), Bluetooth,etc. In this regard, the mobile device 101-01 can communicate andinteract with other computing devices (e.g., mobile devices) for variouspurposes. In one example, mobile device 101-01 can send out one or morenotifications (either automatically or on-demand by a user) to inviteadditional users to download computer application 107-03 (or any otherset of instructions for carrying out the methods described herein).Thus, the user base can be expanded by allowing users to directlyencourage other users (such as friends, family, co-workers, social mediacontacts, etc.) to utilize the methods, systems, and apparatusesdescribed herein to improve their interactions with their preferredcontent and other users.

In other embodiments, the computer readable storage device can include anon-transitory computer readable medium having computer instructionsstored thereon that, when executed by the processor 107-01, cause theprocessor 107-01 to carry out certain methods, as described in greaterdetail below. The processor 107-01, mobile device 101-01, media (e.g.,computer readable storage media), and application 107-03 can be embodiedas any of the processors, mobile devices, media, and applications asdescribed more generally in greater detail above, for example, asdescribed with reference to paragraphs [00141], [00143], [00145],[00182], and [00414]-[00422]. Accordingly, a description of thosefeatures will be not repeated here.

With specific reference to FIG. 63, in various embodiments, method106-00 can be executed by at least one processor 107-01 (FIG. 64) foraggregating information adapted for output to a mobile-based graphicaluser interface (GUI) in accordance with one or more steps. In oneembodiment, the method can include the step of providing, by at leastone processor 107-01 (FIG. 64), a first menu command 106-01 for a firstmenu of one or more user-selectable menu items to be displayed on a menuportion of an AUI display, and the step of providing, by the at leastone processor 107-01 (FIG. 64), a content command 106-02 for content tobe displayed on the menu portion of the AUI display in response to auser's selection. In this example, the information relating to the oneor more user-selectable menu items from the first menu can be aggregatedand adapted to be displayed on a content portion of the AUI display.

For example, the first menu command provided at 106-01 can cause a menuto be displayed on the AUI display. This menu can include a first menuthat includes, for example, one or more categories of applications(e.g., social media, e-mail, etc.). In this example, the “Blend”category is selected by default (although in other embodiments, othercategories can be selected by default or no category is selected bydefault), and the content command can be provided 106-02 thereafter. Inother embodiments, however, these can occur in the reverse order orcontemporaneously. The content command can cause content (e.g., currentcontent and/or additional content) to be displayed in the contentportion of the AUI display. Using the Blend function described above,the content portion in this example would include a blend or aggregationof all content (such as New Content) that is currently available,displayed in any of the manners described above (e.g., by most recent,most important to the user, etc.). Continuing in this example, the usercan either manipulate the information or content provided in the contentportion (as described in greater detail above) and/or select anothermenu item from this menu.

If a user selects another menu item from this first menu (e.g., theEmail category, as illustrated in the embodiment illustrated in FIGS.59A and 59B), the method 106-00 can include the step of providing, bythe at least one processor 107-01 (FIG. 64), a second menu command106-03 for a second menu 102-02 of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on the menu portion of the AUI display in responseto a user's selection. In this example, the second menu includesspecific applications within the Email category (e.g., Outlook, Gmail,etc.), along with the Blend or aggregation function (which aggregatescontent, e.g., all the New Content, from among each of this category'sapplications). In this example, first and second menus can be adapted tobe displayed concurrently, as shown, for example, in FIGS. 59A and 59B,which displays a third menu in addition to the first two. Although FIGS.59A and 59B depict a third menu (e.g., functions, such as, Reply, andReply All), in some embodiments, only the first two (or just one of thetwo) menus are displayed in the menu portion. Once this second menu isdisplayed, the content provided within the content portion can beupdated accordingly, and the users can manipulate the menu (e.g., byselecting a different application, selecting a new category, etc.) toview the content they wish to access and/or manipulate, updating thecontent portion each time, in accordance with the user's selections. Insome embodiments, selecting a menu item within the second menu (or byhaving it chosen for the user by default) can cause a third menu (suchas the one depicted in FIGS. 59A and 59B) to be displayed in the menuportion, as described in detail below.

Using the example where a user selects an application within the secondmenu, method 106-00 can further include the step of providing, by the atleast one processor 107-01 (FIG. 64), a third menu command 106-04 for athird menu of one or more user-selectable menu items to be displayed onthe menu portion of the AUI display in response to the user's selection.Referring again to FIGS. 59A and 59B, here the “Blend” item has beenselected (either by default or by the user) within the second menu, anda third menu is displayed in the menu portion. Here, too, the contentportion can be updated with New Content in accordance with the specificselection within this menu. In this example, the third menu includes amenu of functions associated with the particular application (or in thisexample, because Blend has been selected, all functions associated withall the applications available in the second menu). Similar to the firsttwo menus, users can manipulate the third menu and select particularfunctions available to them from within this menu and the contentportion can be updated accordingly. In the example illustrated in FIGS.59A and 59B, the user can reply to email summarized as the contentdisplayed in the content portion (in this example, this can include allNew Content (e.g., new emails) related to all email of the user's emailapplications). After the user has selected which email to reply to (forexample, in the manner described above regarding how to scroll throughthe current and additional content), the user can select the content(e.g., by tapping on it) to select the detailed content view (asdescribed above, for example, in conjunction with FIG. 60). In certainembodiments, the first, second, and third, menus can be adapted to becollapsed such that the AUI display is adapted to display no more thantwo of the first, second, and third menus concurrently, as shown, forexample, in FIG. 60, which displays only the second menu. The collapsingand expanding functions are described in greater detail above. Thisprocess can continue for additional steps, e.g., fourth menu, fifthmenu, etc., refreshing content displayed on the content portion,removing content displayed on the content portion, etc.

Architecture

The systems, methods, and apparatuses described herein can furtherinclude an aggregating computing system for implementing the featuresdescribed herein. The aggregating computer system may include acloud-based system for connecting a mobile device to one or more contentproviders (alternatively referred to throughout as content producers).These content producers can include third-party content producers, forexample, Facebook (in the context of social media), Outlook (in thecontext of email), and so on. These content producers can include“self-integrated” content producers and/or “directly integrated” contentproducers.

With “self-integrated” producers, the content producer may be customized(e.g., by the third-party producer) to seamlessly integrate with theaggregating computer system, thus obviating the need for any additionalprogramming or bridging software to allow the third-party producer toproperly communicate with a user's mobile device (e.g., by pushingcontent to a mobile device or receiving a request from a mobile deviceto pull content). For the “directly integrated” producers, although theproducer may make its content available to the mobile device, additionalmodifications may be required (either by the mobile device or aclient-side server communicating with the third-party content provider)to allow the mobile device to request and/or receive content from thatproducer. In certain embodiments, all the necessary software,programming, Application Programmer Interface (API) modifications, etc.can reside within, and be performed exclusively by, the mobile device.In this example, the mobile device performs all the necessary functionsto obtain access to content from content producers, such as by using anotification enablement system. In other embodiments, these can residewithin, and be performed exclusively by a client-side server. In thisexample, all the necessary functions are performed outside the mobiledevice (e.g., in a cloud-based system) before the mobile device receivesthe content. In still further embodiments, any combination of these arecontemplated. Further examples are provided below in the context ofvarious exemplary embodiments.

FIG. 65 illustrates a first embodiment of an aggregating computingsystem for implementing the systems, methods, and apparatuses foraggregating information on a mobile-based user interface display. FIG.66 illustrates a detailed view of the aggregating computing systemillustrated in FIG. 65. These figures will be described in conjunctionwith one another.

In certain embodiments, FIG. 65 includes a cloud-based aggregatorcomputer system that can provide seamless integration of other systemsand computers that aggregate content from various content producers fortheir consumers. Content can include email, text messages, video chat,phone calls, social media posts, product and/or service shoppingupdates, and/or any other kind of producer of electronic content forconsumers (including any of the content described above in conjunctionwith one or more of the categories, applications, and/or functions madeavailable through the various menus, e.g., as illustrated in FIGS. 59Aand 59B). In certain embodiments, system 108-00 can include a ContentAggregator Computer System (CACS) 108-01 that can include the systemboundary around the other systems and computers either wholly or partlymaking up the CACS 108-01. The operating system on each computer (inwhole or part) in the CACS 108-01 can include Windows, UNIX, Linux,MacOS, iOS, Android, and/or any other commercial, open-source, and/orspecial-purpose operating system. System 108-00 can further includecontent consumer 108-02 that can include a collection of one or moreusers each using one or more desktop computers, laptop computers,tablets, and/or mobile devices (including any of the mobile devicesdescribed herein, e.g., mobile device 101-01 (FIG. 58)) that can beincluded as part of, or used in conjunction with, CACS 108-01. Incertain embodiments, the content consumer 108-02 can include the one ormore users described in conjunction with other embodiments above, suchas those described in conjunction with FIGS. 58-64.

System 108-00 can further include a directly integrated content producer108-03 that can include one or more content producers directlyintegrated for use in the CACS 108-01 by one or more providers of theCACS 108-01. In certain embodiments, those one or more content producerscan be separate from and/or independent of CACS 108-01 because, forexample, one or more of them could have opted to not self-integrate withthe CACS 108-01. Still further, system 108-00 can include aself-integrated content producer 108-04 that can include one or morecontent producers that can be integrated directly with the CACS 108-01.In these embodiments, one or more computers with one or more softwareapplications and/or services for providing an interface between theproducers' operations and the CACS 108-01 can be provided. Whether acontent provider is self-integrated (illustrated, for example, aselement 108-03) or a content provider is integrated by the provider ofthe CACS 108-01 (illustrated, for example, as element 108-04), eachcontent type as outlined above (e.g., with reference to FIGS. 58-64) canbe associated with its one or more external content providers.

For the vehicle-based applications described above, a similararchitecture can be implemented to fully integrate the mobile devicewith the vehicle (e.g., using either the self-integrated or directlyintegrated model described above). Using the automobile example above,in certain embodiments, a customized API may be implemented for eachautomobile manufacturer to connect to and communicate with the vehicles'electrical, mechanical, and computer controls. In other embodiments, astandardized API may be implemented, which would allow automobilemanufacturers to design an interface for their vehicles to be compatiblewith the standardized API. In these examples, the computing devices(e.g., mobile phone) that contain the AUI can communicate with thevehicle in the any of the manners described above (e.g., NFC, Bluetooth,etc.).

In certain examples, email content providers can include Gmail,Microsoft Outlook, Yahoo! Mail, and/or any other email providers. Textmessage providers can include Apple (such as text services providedbetween or among iPhone mobile phones or other devices from otherproviders), Samsung (such as text services provided between and amongAndroid mobile phones or other devices from other suppliers), FacebookMessenger, WhatsApp, and/or any other text message provider, as well as,directly with any provider of cellular services like Verizon, AT&T,Sprint, and/or any other text messaging provider. Phone call (otheraudio/visual conferencing) providers can include Apple (such as callservices provided between or among iPhone mobile phones or other devicesfrom other providers), Samsung (such as call services between or amongAndroid mobile phones or other devices from other providers), and/or anyother smart-phone provider, as well as, any provider of cellularservices like Verizon, AT&T, Sprint, and/or any other cellular provider.Video chat providers can include Facebook FaceTime, WhatsApp, and/or anyother video chat provider.

Social media posts can include content from Facebook, Twitter,Instagram, Snapchat, YouTube, Pinterest, and/or any other social mediaprovider, including Facebook Messenger, FaceTime, WhatsApp, and/or anyother video chat provider. Product and/or service shopping providers caninclude Amazon, Google Shopping, Pinterest, direct-to-retailers such as,for example, Target, Walmart, Macy's and/or any other retails,direct-to-brand providers such as, for example, Nike, Rolex, Sony,Samsung, Polo, and/or any other brand, and/or any other e-shoppingexperience provider or any other provider mechanism from which contentproviders can provide content to end consumers of the content.

System 108-00 can further include cloud platform 108-05, which can beleveraged to bi-directionally, and in some embodimentsuni-directionally, connect through computers, networking, and/orsoftware, one or more of the computers in CACS 108-01 in a commoncomputing, software services, and data architecture. In certainembodiments, data may be collected and shared, (for example, in asecured manner), by any computer with associated software of the CACS108-01, irrespective of where a particular computer with associatedsoftware in the CACS 108-01 is located throughout the world. In oneembodiment, cloud platform 108-05 can be hosted by a public-cloudprovider that provides a shared computing environment, for example,Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, Microsoft Azure, or others.

Alternatively, it could be hosted by a provider of the CACS 108-01,self-hosted by a private-cloud provider that provides a dedicatedcomputing environment, for example, Oracle Cloud, IBM Cloud, Rackspace,or others, or hosted on some combination of public-cloud, private-cloud,self-hosted, and hosted by the provider of the CACS 108-01. Allcommunication with the cloud platform 108-05 can be accomplished over asecure communication protocol such as a Secure Hypertext TransferProtocol (e.g., HTTPS) to encrypt all communication between sender andreceiver, but an unsecure communication protocol such as HTTP could beused as well using, in either embodiment, connected technologies, suchas Ethernet for local area network (LAN), metropolitan area network(MAN), and/or wide area network (WAN) configurations, and/or unconnectedtechnologies, such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, and/or other similartechnologies for a distributed LAN. Additionally, the CACS 108-01 can bedeployed entirely on one computer, such that all operations of the CACS108-01 can occur on that computer with the only external communicationoccurring between computers and associated software running outside ofthe CACS 108-01. Further, bi-directional communication with the cloudplatform 108-05 can occur between one or more content consumers 108-02and self-integrated content producers 108-04, with only uni-directionalcommunication occurring as initiated by the cloud platform 108-05 tocontent providers 108-03 directly integrated for use in the CACS 108-01.In this particular embodiment, the communication can be uni-directionalbecause those content providers have not chosen to self-integrate, buttheir content is relevant to content consumers 108-02.

FIG. 66 illustrates an embodiment of the software architecture of thecloud-based content aggregator computer systems of FIG. 65 for providinga seamless integration of other systems, computers, and softwareproviding an optimized user's experience in receiving content fromvarious content providers participating and/or integrated into the CACS108-01. This embodiment further details one manner in which content canbe requested from or sent to a mobile device for one or moreself-integrated content producers (e.g., producers that choose tointegrate with the CACS 108-01, thus obviating the need for anyadditional programming or bridging software to allow the third-partyproducer to properly communicate with a user's mobile device). Withthese producers, content can be sent and/or received through an API,content posting services, content response services, as described ingreater detail below. This embodiment further includes one or moredirectly integrated content producers (e.g., a producer that has madeits content available to the mobile device but requires additionalmodifications to the CACS 108-01 to allow the mobile device to requestand/or receive content from that producer). With these producers,content can be sent and/or received through an API, content-bridgingservices, and/or response-bridging services, as described in greaterdetail below.

In this embodiment, at the core of CACS 108-01 is the cloud platform108-05 that can provide a common computing, software services, and dataarchitecture such that data may be collected and shared by any computerwith associated software of the CACS 108-01, irrespective of where aparticular computer with associated software in the CACS 108-01 islocated throughout the world. The one or more services servers 109-01can provide a scalable, robust, high-performing, and secure computingand associated software platform to support services specific to theCACS 108-01. The one or more services servers 109-01 can be utilized forretrieving, storing, transferring, and/or transforming data associatedwith the use of the CACS 108-01 and the one or more data servicesservers 109-07. These data services servers 109-07 can provide ascalable, robust, high-performing, and secure computing and associatedsoftware platform for one or more structured and/or unstructureddatabases that can be used for storing and/or retrieving data producedby and/or for users of the CACS 108-01. Moreover, they can be used forstoring and/or retrieving data produced and/or used by the CACS 108-01for its preparation for use, as well as, through its use.

System 108-00 can further include data store 109-08, such as databasetechnology, that can be relational in nature including, for example, SQLServer, Oracle, MySQL, Postgres, Aurora, and/or other like relationaldatabase technologies. Data store 109-08 can additionally includedatabase technology that is non-relational in nature including, forexample, Dynamo DB, Mongo DB, and/or other like non-relational databasetechnologies and/or one or more bulk data servers providing a scalable,robust, high-performing, and secure computing and associated softwareplatform for storing and retrieving file-based data provided for use ofthe CACS 108-01 and/or produced through the use of the CACS 108-01.

System 108-00 can further include App services 109-01. In certainembodiments, App services 109-01 can have associated with it a logicalcollection of services for example, post content services 109-02, whichcan represent a logical collection of services to support pushingcontent from providers for the CACS 108-01. System 108-00 can furtherinclude post content bridging services 109-03, which can represent alogical collection of services to support integration of directlyintegrated content providers 108-03 to pull content from those providersfor the CACS 108-01. Examples of the manner in which the system 108-00can receive push- and/or pull-based content are provided in greaterdetail above in conjunction with the description of the Blend feature.App services 109-01 can further include get content services 109-04,which can represent a logical collection of services for retrievingcontent from providers stored in data services 109-07 for the CACS108-01, and response services 109-05, representing a logical collectionof services that can provide support for various types of responses tocontent from providers directed back to the content providersself-integrated with the CACS 108-01.

Still further, App services 109-01 can include response-bridgingservices 109-06, which can represent a logical collection of servicesthat provide support for various types of responses to content fromproviders directed back to the content providers that are notself-integrated with the CACS 108-01, and a logical service (not shown)of the CACS 108-01 that can provide login authentication and logoutfeatures to ensure proper use of the CACS 108-01 by both end users aswell as external systems integrated with the CACS 108-01. In oneembodiment, when users log in to the CACS 108-01, they can also belogged into each of the content providers, e.g., self-integrated 108-04and directly integrated 108-03 content providers, as desired by theparticular user.

In certain embodiments, app services 109-01 can include a scaledcomputing infrastructure derived from one or more servers, for example,such that each server can deploy all logical collection of services(e.g., the services depicted as elements 109-02-06) to enable a loadbalancer to equally distribute requests for services across the one ormore servers represented by app services 109-01 to optimize userinteraction. In some embodiments, this load balancing technique can berealized if the logical collection of services (e.g., the servicesdepicted as elements 109-02-06) are designed using a RESTful(representational state transfer) design pattern. In this example, eachprovided service is stateless such that it does not store or hold data,and therefore any request made on the service can be fulfilled by anyavailable server the service is deployed on in app services 109-01 basedon demand at the time of request. To support optimal deployment andoperation of the logical collection of services (e.g., the servicesdepicted as elements 109-02-06) on one or more computers, one embodimentbuilds one or more of these services on a distributed-object platformsuch as Java Platform Enterprise Edition, which can supportcross-platform computing architectures, .NET Framework for Windows-onlycomputing architectures, or other like distributed-object platforms, orleverage some combination of one or more of these distributed-objectplatforms.

As discussed in greater detail above, the directly integrated contentproviders 108-03 can include content providers that choose to notself-integrate with the CACS 108-01. In this regard, they merely providetheir APIs 109-11 for other computing systems with software to invokethese services to retrieve content and/or respond to retrieved content.In certain embodiments, for example those that rely on thesenon-self-integrated providers, the CACS 108-01, through a post contentbridging service 109-03, can periodically invoke service calls on one ormore directly integrated content providers 108-03 to retrieve contentfor a content consumer 108-02. This post-content bridging service 109-03can be specially configured by a user of content consumers 108-02 withadequate credentials of that user on whose behalf the CACS 108-01 ismaking the API 109-11 calls upon return of content invoking services ofpost content 109-02. In this example, the content for the contentconsumer 108-02 retrieved through data services 109-07 can be stored indata stores 109-08.

As discussed in greater detail above, the self-integrated contentproviders 108-04 can include content providers that choose toself-integrate with the CACS 108-01 by providing content through acontent posting service 109-13. The content posting service 109-13 canrun on one or more of the self-integrated content provider's 108-04integration computers 109-12, which can periodically invoke servicecalls of content provider's API 109-15 to push content from the contentprovider 108-04 for a content consumer 108-02 specially configured by auser of content consumers 108-02. In certain embodiments, the contentprovided can be based on the credentials of that user on whose behalfthe CACS 108-01 has configured the content provider to inform it that auser of its system requested content to be pushed.

Self-integrated content providers 108-04 can additionally include acontent response service 109-14 that can enable a content consumer108-02 to respond to content pushed to it on the CACS 108-01. In thisembodiment, the content presented on the content provider's system108-04 can be associated with content originally pushed to that user onthe CACS 108-01. Further, the response service 109-05 can include aprescribed web service URL associated with the response action, and acontent consumer 108-02 could act on the aggregator app 109-10 (asdescribed in greater detail below) where the service can be implementedby the CACS 108-01 through the response-bridging services 109-06. Inthis example, the response-bridging services 109-06 can invoke APIservices of the directly integrated content provider's 108-03 API 109-11so as to present the response on the content consumer 108-02. In anotherexample, the service can be implemented by the self-integrated contentprovider 108-04 via the content response service 109-14, which cantranslate the request to one or more calls to the API 109-15 so as topresent the response on the content provider 108-04.

Content consumer 108-02 can include one or more content consumers thatcan each run an aggregator app 109-10 on one or more computing devices109-09 for each of the content consumers 108-02. The aggregator app109-10 can be used to perform certain functions, such as the Blendfunction for aggregating content (e.g., New Content) as described ingreater detail above. In some embodiments, the one or more computingdevices 109-09 can include the mobile device 101-01 (e.g., asillustrated in FIG. 58). In certain embodiments, the aggregator app109-10 can periodically invoke get content service 109-04 to presentcontent that has been aggregated from various content providers eitherdirectly integrated and/or self-integrated through the get contentservices 109-04 invoking data services 109-06. This process can beemployed to retrieve content targeted for the requesting contentconsumer 108-02 queried from the one or more data stores 109-08.

One or more content consumers 108-02 could choose to respond (e.g.,through the aggregator app 109-10) to some content provided to them byinvoking services through the response services 109-05, invoking dataservices 109-06 to retrieve response information about the contenttargeted for the requesting content consumer 108-02 queried from one ormore data stores 109-07. In certain embodiments, the response can dependon the type of content users are viewing. For example, for email,responses can include: reply, reply all, forward, and/or any otheremail-related response; for text messages, responses can include replyand/or any other text message-related response; for video chats,responses can include reply and/or any other video chat-relatedresponse; for phone calls, responses can include call-back and/or anyother phone call-related response; for social media posts, responses caninclude like, share, comment, and/or any other social media-relatedresponse; for product and/or service shopping updates, responses caninclude like, share, comment, list, buy, and/or any other product and/orservice shopping-related response; and/or for any other kind ofelectronic content, responses can include any suitable responseassociated with the content being provided. In other embodiments, theseresponses can include one or more of the functions described above(e.g., the functions of the third menu as discussed in conjunction withFIGS. 59A and 59B).

The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing particularembodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. Asused herein, the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the” are intended toinclude the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicatesotherwise. It will be further understood that the terms “includes”and/or “including,” when used in this specification, specify thepresence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements,and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of oneor more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements,components, and/or groups thereof.

The embodiments described above are illustrative examples and it shouldnot be construed that the present invention is limited to theseparticular embodiments. It should be understood that various embodimentsdisclosed herein may be combined in different combinations than thecombinations specifically presented in the description and accompanyingdrawings. It should also be understood that, depending on the example,certain acts or events of any of the processes or methods describedherein may be performed in a different sequence, may be added, merged,or left out altogether (e.g., all described acts or events may not benecessary to carry out the methods or processes). In addition, whilecertain features of embodiments hereof are described as being performedby a single module or unit for purposes of clarity, it should beunderstood that the features and functions described herein may beperformed by any combination of units or modules. Thus, various changesand modifications may be affected by one skilled in the art withoutdeparting from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined in theappended claim.

TABLE 1 Email Text Voice News/Web Content Gmail Android MessagesFacebook Cable News (CNN, Messenger Fox News, MSNBC) Outlook Chomp SMSGrooVe IP Finanical News/Quotes (Forbes Market, MarketWatch) Yahoo!EvolveSMS imo Podcasts (The Daily, Mail Undisclosed) Facebook MaaiiPrint News (New York Messenger Times, Wall Street Journal) Handcent NextSMS Skype RSS feed aggregators (BBC News, TechCrunch) Mood MessengerText Free Pulse SMS TextNow QKSMS WhatsApp Textra SMS WhatsApp YAATA SMS

TABLE 2 Upcoming Shopping Events/Appointments Online ForumsEntertainment Amazon Any.do iMore Disney Plus Dosh Apple CalendarTapatalk DoggCatcher Ebates Cozi Dubsmash Etsy Fantastical 2 FlixsterFlipp Google Calendar HBO Now Google Shopping Microsoft History VaultOutlook Calendar Ibotta My Study Life Hulu Pinterest Thunderbird NetflixLightning Calendar RetailMeNot TimePage Pandora Music SlickdealsTimeTree Pandora Music Redbok Ted YouTube

TABLE 3 Travel Law Enforcement Education Gaming Airbnb ALDF Crime TipsBrainscape Candy Crush Saga AllTrails Blood Alcohol Due Clash of ClansContent Calculator Cheap Tickets CCW - Concealed edX Clash Royale Carry50 States Culture Trip CrimePush Security GradeProof Dragon Ball ZDokkan Battle Google Flights Family Tracker Memrise Fantasy WestwardJourney Google Maps First Aid My Study Life Lineage M Hopper ICE - InCase of Photomath Monster Strike Emergency Hotel Tonight My PoliceReady4 SAT Pokemon Go Department TripIt NearParent The Great TwitchCourses Pocket Law Udacity Police Radio PoliceRadar

TABLE 4 Business Services Devices (IoT) Software Applications BasecampDrift Control4 MyHome Appery Eternity Time Log Freshdesk NestAppsmakerstore Evernote Front Ninja Blocks Appy Pie Pocket MailchimpSavant TrueControl Bizness Apps RescueTime Pipedrive SmartThings FelgoToggl Slack WeMo Mobincube Trello Zapier Shoutem Wunderlist ZendeskVerivo Zoho Discord

TABLE 5 Building/Facilities Security Medical Weather CBRE ServiceInsightApplock 3D4Medical Carrot Weather FMX Bouncer DynaMed Plus Dark SkyHippo CMMS Find My Epocrates Emergency: Device by Alerts iLab CoreFacility Firefox Focus Lexicomp NOAA Radar Pro Nexudus Spaces GlassWireMedPage The Weather Today Channel Quick Base LastPass MedscapeWeatherbug ServiceNow Facility ProtonVPN PEPID Yahoo! Weather SkeddaBookings Resilio Sync UpToDate Alarm.com WebMD

TABLE 6 Productivity Lifestyle Utility Video Evernote Charity Miles FindMy Device ALLO Foxit Drugs.com GasBuddy Camfrog Google Drive ElevateGlassWire Facebook Messenger Google Keep First Aid Google AssistantFaceTime HelloSign HealthTap IFTTT google Duo Lucidchart LumosityLastPass Hala MindMeister My Diet Coach MiXplorer Silver Hangouts PixlrMyFitnessPal ProtonVPN ICQ Pocket ShopWell Solid Explorer IMO ScanbotSleep Cycle Wifi Analyzer JusTalk Screencastify Symple Symptom KakaoTalkLINE Nimbuzz ooVoo Skype SliQ Snapchat Tango Viber WeChat WhatsApp ZaloZoom

TABLE 7 Social Media   Facebook Messenger FaceTime Instagram PinterestReddit Snapchat Twitter WhatsApp YouTube Baidu Tieba Facebook FoursquareLine LinkedIn QQ QZone Renren Sina Weibo Tagged Taringa Telegram TumblrViber Vkontakte WeChat WhatsApp YY

What is claimed is:
 1. A method executed by at least one processor foraggregating information adapted for output to a graphical user interface(GUI), the method comprising: providing, by at least one processor, afirst menu command for a first menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems to be displayed on a menu portion of an Aggregated User Interface(AUI) display; and providing, by the at least one processor, a contentcommand for content to be displayed on the menu portion of the AUIdisplay in response to a user's selection, wherein information relatingto the one or more user-selectable menu items from the first menu isaggregated and adapted to be displayed on a content portion of the AUIdisplay.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first menu and theinformation relating to the one or more user-selectable menu items areadapted to be displayed concurrently.
 3. The method of claim 1 furthercomprising providing, by the at least one processor, a second menucommand for a second menu of one or more user-selectable menu items tobe displayed on the menu portion of the AUI display in response to auser's selection, wherein the first and second menus are adapted to bedisplayed concurrently.
 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the secondmenu of user-selectable menu items adapted to be displayed are limitedto a user's top 10% most frequently used applications.
 5. The method ofclaim 3, wherein the second menu of one or more user-selectable menuitems comprises one or more user-selectable menu items at least onehierarchical menu level lower than the first menu.
 6. The method ofclaim 3, wherein the each of the first and second menus are adapted tobe displayed in a horizontal orientation, further wherein the first andsecond menus are adapted to be displayed in a nested fashion withrespect to each other.
 7. The method of claim 3, wherein the second menuof one or more user-selectable menu items comprises one or moreapplications within a particular category.
 8. The method of claim 3further comprising providing, by the at least one processor, a thirdmenu command for a third menu of one or more user-selectable menu itemsto be displayed on the menu portion of the AUI display in response to auser's selection, further wherein the first, second, and third menu areadapted to be collapsed whereby the AUI display is adapted to display nomore than two of the first, second, and third menus concurrently.
 9. Themethod of claim 8, wherein information relating to the one or moreuser-selectable menu items from one or more of the first, second, andthird menus is aggregated and adapted to be displayed on a contentportion of the AUI display.
 10. The method of claim 9, wherein theaggregated information comprises only content not previously displayedon the AUI display.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the first menu ofone or more user-selectable menu items comprises one or more categoriesof applications.
 12. The method of claim 11, wherein the categories ofapplications includes one or more of: electronic mail, social media,messaging, audio/visual conferencing, and shopping.
 13. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the content adapted to be displayed in the contentportion is adapted to be displayed in a vertical orientation, furtherwherein the vertical orientation comprises a graphical rotating wheel.14. The method of claim 1, wherein the first menu and the content areadapted to be displayed on a background comprising pixels, wherein atleast 75% of the pixels are black.
 15. The method of claim 1, whereinthe content adapted to be displayed in the content portion of the AUIdisplay is adapted to be displayed in one or more a first and secondsubsection, wherein the first subsection comprises a name of anindividual or a group, and the second subsection comprises contentassociated with the name of that individual or group.
 16. The method ofclaim 1, wherein the content portion is adapted to display one or moreof current content and additional content, further wherein the currentcontent and additional content are adapted to be emphasized anddeemphasized, respectively, on the AUI display.
 17. The method of claim1, wherein the content includes one or more of: an individual's name; agroup's name; a date; a time; a subject; a message; a photo; a video; anattachment; or a link to other content.
 18. The method of claim 1,wherein the content portion further comprises an interactive contentportion adapted to receive text- or graphical based inputs.
 19. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the menu portion further comprises the firstmenu, a scroll zone, and one or more of a second menu of one or moreuser-selectable menu items and third menu of one or more user-selectablemenu items, further wherein two or more of the first, second, and thirdmenus are adapted to be displayed as a series of concentric wheels,further wherein the scroll zone is adapted rotate the one or more of thefirst, second, and third menus.
 20. The method of claim 19, wherein themenu portion is adapted to be disposed below the content portion on theAUI display.
 21. The method of claim 1, wherein the order that the oneor more user-selectable menu items are displayed is determined by userpreferences and/or a user's previous interactions with the one or moreuser-selectable menu items.
 22. The method of claim 1, wherein theaggregated information includes only content that the user has notpreviously viewed.
 23. The method of claim 1, wherein the aggregatedinformation is arranged in reverse chronological order or by applicationtype.
 24. A system for aggregating information adapted for output to agraphical user interface (GUI), the system comprising: at least oneprocessor; a computing device; and a computer readable storage mediumconfigured to store a computer application, wherein the at least oneprocessor is configured to execute instructions of the computerapplication for: providing, by the at least one processor, a first menucommand for a first menu of one or more user-selectable menu items to bedisplayed on a menu portion of an Aggregated User Interface (AUI)display; and providing, by the at least one processor, a content commandfor content to be displayed on the menu portion of the AUI display inresponse to a user's selection, wherein information relating to the oneor more user-selectable menu items from the first menu is aggregated andadapted to be displayed on a content portion of the AUI display.
 25. Thesystem of claim 24, wherein the computing device is a mobile device. 26.A non-transitory computer readable medium having computer instructionsstored thereon that, when executed by a processor, cause the processorto carry out a method for aggregating information adapted for output toa graphical user interface (GUI), the method comprising: providing, bythe at least one processor, a first menu command for a first menu of oneor more user-selectable menu items to be displayed on a menu portion ofan Aggregated User Interface (AUI) display; and providing, by the atleast one processor, a content command for content to be displayed onthe menu portion of the AUI display in response to a user's selection,wherein information relating to the one or more user-selectable menuitems from the first menu is aggregated and adapted to be displayed on acontent portion of the AUI display.